FirstBank of Nigeria has advised its corporate customers on ways to grow their businesses.

Speaking during the bank’s Corporate Customer Engagement Forum in Lagos, FirstBank Group Chief Executive Officer, Adesola Adeduntan, said the event was to provide provide vital updates on developments in the financial landscape, as a mark of its commitment to putting customers at the heart of the bank’s business.

Adeduntan, who was represented at the event by FirstBank Group Executive, Technology, Digital Innovation & Services, Callistus Obeta, said the event enabled the facilitators focus on topical issues and the economic outlook after 100 days of a change in government.

“As we dive into the business, I like to mention that for the second year in a row, FirstBank has been awarded the Best Corporate Bank in Western Africa 2023 by Global Banking and Finance Awards amongst other high-profile global recognitions. Our recently released H1 2023 financials also attest to the consistent upward leap that has become a second nature to us in FirstBank, accentuating our commitment to becoming Africa’s Bank of first choice,” he said.

Adeduntan said the bank made an impressive, record-breaking Profit Before Tax of N188.8 billion, up 214.6 per cent y-o-y (June 2022: N60.0 billion) with Total Assets climaxing to N13.6 trillion, year to date and customers’ deposit growing to N8.8 trillion, up 26.9 per cent year to day , among several other remarkable indices.

On her part, Head of Treasury Sales and Derivatives Marketing at FirstBank, Mrs. Adeola Abioye, advised businesses to go for long term foreign currency loans, to give them enough time to payback when the ongoing market volatility and dollar crunch improve.

“We also recommend that you close out existing positions that lead to losses. Those with foreign loans should seek extension of tenor and for new trades, should be long term of six months or one year.”

“We have seen a surge in the non-oil export, but the concentration has been on the agriculture. I think that businesses should be more more deliberate and intentional about focusing more on non-oil export.

“The body language is that we are not going to seeing as much supplies from monetary authority as we were seeing in the past. The generation of forex supply will then lie in the market because we are not likely to be seeing the CBN playing the major role that they played in the past in providing forex.”

“Businesses now have to get their own source of forex, and one way to do that is to be more intentional and deliberate, focusing on export business. Not just for companies that are traditionally within the export business but even for companies that are import dependent to look at export as a way of diversifying our businesses,” she said.

Also speaking, Founder and Chief Consultant of B. Adedipe Associates Limited, ’Biodun Adedipe, said an organisation should have the ability to access quickly new funds, either to take advantage of an emerging opportunity in its market or to survive/stabilize during a crisis or major shock in its operating environment.

Adedipe, who spoke on ‘Policy Shifts and Disruptions- What, Why and Implications’ advised business owners to be nimble, agile and responsive to the changing business environment, including the challenge of naira depreciation, petrol subsidy removal, taxation, among others.