Union Bank, one of Nigeria’s foremost financial institutions, has launched Alpher, its women’s banking proposition targeted at enabling women for success. The launch event, themed ‘Take Your Best Shot’ featured special guests including the Bank’s Board Chair, Beatrice Hamza Bassey, Chief Executive Officer, Emeka Emuwa and the Head of Retail Bank and Digital, Lola Cardoso, along with other Executives of the Bank.
Alpher was initially unveiled at the Bank’s 2019 International Women’s Day celebration, and has since then been developed into a fully-fledged proposition, set to change the face of banking for Nigerian women.
The Alpher platform provides tailored support for the individual woman, women-owned and women-led businesses. Women can benefit from a wide range of financial services, business and career development opportunities and lifestyle discounts.
Speakers at the launch included Hamza Bassey, Onyeche Tifase, Chief Executive Officer, Siemens Nigeria; Abisoye Ajayi-Akinfolarin, Founder, Pearls Africa Youth Foundation; Toyin Odulate, Founder Olori Cosmetics; and Bikiya Graham-Douglas, Founder, Beeta Universal Arts Foundation.
While addressing the audience at the event, the CEO of the Bank, Emeka Emuwa, said: “Gender equality and women empowerment are important to us at Union Bank. With our track record of supporting women, Alpher is a natural next step for us. Through Alpher, our focus is to empower women across all segments of the Nigerian society with tailored financial services, and other benefits that improve the quality of their lives.
Also speaking at the launch, Lola Cardoso reminded women of the need to take their best shot at attaining their dreams in order to live a fulfilled and impactful life. She also said: “We are pleased to introduce Alpher, our unique banking proposition developed to create an enabling environment for women as they pursue their dreams and aspirations.”
Union Bank recently secured $200 million in funding via a partnership with Atlas Mara Limited from Overseas Private Investment Corporation (“OPIC”), the U.S. government’s development finance institution. The funding is to drive investments in digitization, on-lending to small and medium-scale enterprises (SMEs), and funding for women-led businesses.
Union Bank has a history of showing support to women businesses and enterprises. In 2019 to reiterate its commitment to women, the Bank awarded 40 scholarships to women entrepreneurs to build their capacity through the Enterprise & Leadership Program (ELP) organised by China Europe International Business School (CEIBS) in partnership with Leading Ladies Africa. The launch of Alpher is in line with Union Bank’s long-standing commitment to enable enterprise and empower women, their businesses and careers.
Established in 1917 and listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in 1971, Union Bank of Nigeria Plc. is a household name and one of Nigeria’s long-standing and most respected financial institutions. The Bank is a trusted and recognizable brand, with an extensive network of over 300 branches across Nigeria.
In late 2012, a new Board of Directors and Executive Management team were appointed to Union Bank and in 2014 the Bank began executing a transformation programme to re-establish it as a highly respected provider of quality financial services. The Bank currently offers a variety of banking services to both individual and corporate clients including current, savings and deposit account services, funds transfer, foreign currency domiciliation, loans, overdrafts, equipment leasing and trade finance. The Bank also offers its customers convenient electronic banking channels and products including Online Banking, Mobile Banking, Debit Cards, ATMs and POS Systems.
