Access Holdings Targets 50 Million Customer Base by 2027
. Reiterates investments In Future Banking
By Sulaimon Salau
Access Holdings Plc said it plans to attain the position whereby about 50 million customers will transact with the company daily by 2027.
This is even as the company justified its high cost-to-income ratio, saying it is still relatively high because of its necessary investments in various aspects of its growth and expansion that is expected to yield huge benefits in the short to medium term.
In making this justification, Access Holdings noted that investing in growth and expansion of Access Bank Plc, its banking group, with huge financial commitment to robust infrastructure- physical and technology- are part of a comprehensive strategy to consolidate the company’s presence across major global markets and make it more viable and profitable.
This clarification was made at a recent media roundtable, where Access Holdings’ leadership, including the Acting GCEO of Access Holdings, Ms. Bolaji Agbede; Group Managing Director/CEO of Access Bank Plc, Roosevelt Ogbonna; Managing Director of Access Pensions, Dave Uduanu; Managing Director of Hydrogen Payments, Kemi Okusanya; and Khade Idogho among other Executive Directors, shared key initiatives that reinforce the group’s vision for sustainable, global impact.
Ogbonna said while agreeing that the banking group’s cost to income ratio was high, such costs were necessary and one-off that would enable it scale up its operations and take its pride of place in financial services offerings in Africa and the World.
According to him, the cost may remain elevated for a while, but ultimately, it would come down.
“They say, ‘your cost income ratio is high’. Yes, I agree it is high, but I’m making the investment this year. We’re going to spend $80 million on technology. That’s the cost that I’m hoping I don’t have to repeat next year or the year after. But guess what? It means that I can process 200 million transactions per second. So, I’m not building for today. Today I don’t even have 20 million customers. I have 65 million customers, and the projection is by 2027, I have 125 million customers, but I’m projecting 200 million transactions per second. And how do we count transactions today?
“We say that by 2027, 50 million customers will transact with us daily, and they don’t necessarily have to do banking transactions. They could do consumer lending, do Fintech, do fashion business, do banking business, if they have so that’s how we look at the entire ecosystem. At least 50 million customers come to us daily. We will continue this investment phase. The cost to income ratio will stay elevated for this period, and ultimately, and ultimately, it will begin to wind down,” he said.
Ogbonna emphasised Access Bank’s commitment to infrastructure investment spanning physical and digital assets, aiming to enhance the banking experience across Africa.
“In 2023 alone, we opened 61 branches in Nigeria despite a challenging macroeconomic climate, showcasing our dedication to expanding retail banking,” he said.
He added that the bank was in the process of erecting fully digitalised branches, popularly known as ‘branches of the future,’ in strategic locations of its operations. This expansion, he pointed out, would leverage “fit-for-purpose” technology to increase financial access for underserved commu
