Elias Igbinakenzua is the managing director and chief executive officer of Globus Bank. In this exclusive interview with BusinessDay’s Wasiu Alli and Chinwe Michael, the CEO explains how the lender was able to complete its capital raise in record time ahead of the first quarter 2026 deadline given by the Central Bank of Nigeria. Excerpts:
Globus Bank is relatively new in the industry. What would you say differentiates Globus from other commercial banks in Nigeria, and how are you navigating competition from Tier-1 banks and fintechs?
This is our 6th year of operation, so yes, we are relatively new in the industry. We came at the time of crisis if you recall – November 6, 2019, just before COVID emerged. I often say we were like a child born during the war, and that shaped our mindset to be problem solving and solution oriented.
From day one, we approached the market differently. We sat with customers and asked, ‘what are your pain points?’ then crafted solutions specifically to address them. That set us apart. During COVID, we accelerated our IT strategy, pulling forward plans we had set 3-4 years ahead to ensure banking could continue without disruption. Customers saw us as a bank that stood firmly with them, and that earned us their trust.
When FX became difficult to access and CBN was unable to satisfy the demand, we focused on alternative sources, meeting those needs within regulatory confines, without relying on the CBN. So that made us quite different from other banks at that time.
Competition is always going to be there, but we lean on our strengths: our people, our technology and our reach. These allow us to compete very well in the market. We are not in competition with the big names, rather we are in a unique way creating our market space and positive impact on all stakeholders. If you look at the market today, we are visible in over 80% of the top corporates in Nigeria. No other bank of our size and age has this reach. So, we will remain focused on making our impact and creating value rather than competing with the big banks.
Globus Bank prides itself as a digitally driven bank. So, what specific technologies or innovations are you betting on to shape the future of banking?
We describe ourselves as a ‘phygital’ bank, 20% brick and mortar and 80% digital. Since inception, we’ve recorded many firsts: the first bank to enable banking on mobile without data, and the first to integrate AI into a mobile app.
Today in Globus bank, most of our applications, including our token solution are developed in-house by our IT team of over 50 professionals with more than 30 focused purely on software development. Technology is our strength and we leverage that with our people to deliver solutions that stand out in the market.
With the recent opening of new branches, bringing the bank’s physical outlets to about 43. How does this expansion drive fits into the company’s broader plans?
From the outset, we were clear about our ambitionto be a household name in Nigeria. Our goal was to be in every state capital within our first 5-6 years and in every city in Nigeria by our tenth year. Today, we have 43 branches spread across the north, south, east and west. And these are in core cities, and just a little bit short of being in every state capital, because we have gone ahead to open more than one in some cities.
But we are over 90% done in that regard. And we think that is the way to go.
We do not believe banking should be strictly virtual for now. Physical presence reinforces credibility and connection. So, it has worked for us and we’re not stopping. This year alone, we have opened six new branches, and we intend to do at least 10 before the year ends.
How is Globus Bank contributing to Nigeria’s financial inclusion goals, especially among MSMEs and the unbanked?
From the business plan we submitted to the CBN for our license in 2018, financial inclusion was set as one of our core objectives, to be driven by technology.
We developed a mobile app that allows account opening from anywhere in the country in under four minutes, enabling customers to deposit and receive funds immediately. And a lot of people actually came on board. That was the idea of reaching out to the unbanked and the underbanked. And today, if you ask most of the youth, they will say their preferred bank is the Globus Bank.
Many young people, whether schooling abroad or locally have benefited from one or two soft loans from us. Beyond that, we have an MSMEs group called ‘Business Banking’ that’s focused on organizing training on accounting, proper record keeping, and good governance for MSMEs. These efforts have helped us reach the unbanked and underbanked and make them more bankable. So, we think we’ve done quite a lot in that regard to earn loyalty from this segment and we are not stopping.
In the face of rising default risks and economic uncertainty, how is Globus Bank managing credit exposure?
We have loan products — loans that are off the shelf. We offer ready-made loan products with clear criteria, enabling businesses and investors who qualify to access funds quickly without lengthy approval processes.
Our retail lending model is value chain driven – we look at the entire ecosystem a customer belongs to and determine how they fit into the chain? It’s like a stream. When the stream is flowing, it flows through veins. Following this vein ensures all relevant members of the value chain or ecosystem are captured and your needs are met.This approach helps reduce default risks and helps sustainability.
In the face of rising default risks and economic uncertainty, how is Globus bank managing credit explosion?
We are still zero NPL after 6 years, we don’t have a single bad loan just yet. I’m not saying we won’t have; for now, we don’t have. That’s because we have been very deliberate in picking those we lend to. Whether it’s MSMEs or whether it’s commercial banking or corporate borrower, we are very deliberate.
The risk of default is lower when credit decision making is collective. That is why, I am probably the only CEO who does believe in having management credit limits where the MD/CEO can virtually approve alone. Even though we have limits approved in line with good corporate governance practice, I insist on taking all credit approvals through the Board Credit Committee. There’s always a consensus on who we lend to.That way, mistakes are minimized.
When we came in as a new bank 2019, we had no legacy issues. So, COVID came and it made us more cautious. While many banks have issues to contend with, we were fortunate to be new and didn’t make those mistakes of old.
How is the CBN’s tightening stance and evolving monetary policy affecting your lending strategy and cost of funds?
First, let us give honour to whom honour is due. The CBN, under the new CBN governor, has done a great job. I must commend him and his team for that.
When he came in, inflation was soaring and the Naira was steadily crashing. Today, with the monetary policies put in place, we are seeing stability in the exchange rate and moderation in inflation, perhaps not as we want it to be, but it’s getting better, and this has led to restored confidence.
So, to that extent, we would say the CBN policies have been impactful. The impact of those policies on banks, however, is a different ball game. We have had to make numerous sacrifices as an industry to ensure that things return to normal. The current 50% Cash Reserve Ratio is the highest cash reserve ratio in the world. What it means today is that if I have deposits of say ₦1 trillion, CBN will take ₦500 billion at zero interest.
Meanwhile, I still pay customers interest at over 20%. I cannot use that money to do business because half of it has been sequestered by the CBN. That places a heavy strain on our ability to lend. We are struggling, but we also understand that it’s a time to make sacrifices to stabilize the economy and we are hoping that as things improve the CBN will ease this ratio a little bit and give banks some respite. Right now, it is tough.
Read also: Globus Bank’s Credit Rating Upgraded to “A”