By Ayomide Otitoju
Fidelity Bank Plc and its Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, have won two awards at the 14th BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards.
Onyeali-Ikpe received the Award for Excellence in Banking Leadership, while Fidelity Bank was named Best Bank in Oil and Gas Financing.
The awards were presented recently at the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.
According to BusinessDay Media Limited, the leadership award recognises banking executives who have driven institutional growth, enhanced shareholder value, promoted innovation and financial inclusion, and contributed to the development of Nigeria’s financial services sector.
Reacting to the recognition, Onyeali-Ikpe thanked the organisers and dedicated the award to the bank’s customers, board, management and employees.
“I am deeply honoured to receive the Award for Excellence in Banking Leadership. I sincerely thank BusinessDay Media Limited for this recognition and dedicate it to our valued customers, whose trust and support have strengthened and inspired me throughout my career,” she said.
She added that the African philosophy of Ubuntu, which emphasises shared identity and collective achievement, reflected the contributions of the bank’s workforce to its progress.
“In that spirit, this honour also belongs to the board, management and staff of Fidelity Bank Plc, whose dedication and professionalism continue to drive our vision of a stronger, more innovative and customer-focused financial institution,” she said.
Onyeali-Ikpe has more than three decades of banking experience spanning retail, corporate and commercial banking, treasury and business development.
Since assuming office as chief executive, she has overseen the bank’s growth and expansion of its international operations, including the acquisition of the former Union Bank UK, now FidBank UK Limited.
The Best Bank in Oil and Gas Financing award recognised Fidelity Bank’s involvement in projects across Nigeria’s energy value chain.
The bank financed the development of an onshore crude oil export terminal at the Otakikpo Marginal Field in Rivers State. It also supported the Pinnacle Oil and Gas Terminal in Lekki, Lagos, and part-financed a 23,000-cubic-metre liquefied petroleum gas carrier for Temile Development Company Limited.
In addition, Fidelity Bank participated in the $3 billion SNEPCo Contractor Finance Facility, which provides naira and dollar financing to indigenous contractors executing projects for Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo).
The projects are aimed at supporting local participation in the energy sector, improving petroleum product distribution and gas availability, and developing critical energy infrastructure.
The awards highlight the bank’s activities in leadership, financial services and energy-sector financing, areas considered important to Nigeria’s economic development.
