Bank led by Nigerian billionaire Femi Otedola partners with French financier on climate initiative

Omokolade Ajayi -

Key Points:

  • FirstBank leads sustainability push in Africa, teaming up with French development agency Proparco.
  • Bank sets ambitious goals, invests in employee training to reduce environmental impact.
  • Under Otedola’s leadership, FBN soars with record profits while prioritizing sustainability.

First Bank of Nigeria Limited, the banking arm of First Bank of Nigeria Holdings (FBN Holdings), a leading financial service group led by Nigerian billionaire Femi Otedola, has partnered with Proparco, a development finance institution backed by the French Development Agency, to spearhead climate initiatives within its operations and strategy.

This collaboration aims to establish FBN Holdings as a frontrunner in African climate finance. The 130-year-old institution is currently developing a framework to quantify its operational greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions across its extensive branch network and offices.

The process entails meticulous data collection on electricity and diesel consumption, water usage, waste management practices, fuel usage, business travel, and more. This data will be crucial in defining FBN’s baseline emissions and identifying innovative avenues to reduce its environmental footprint.

FBN Holdings empowers staff for green shift

To achieve this ambitious goal, FBN Holdings is investing in employee training and infrastructure to seamlessly integrate climate action into its core operations. A two-day partnership strategy workshop, co-organized by IPC and Valoris (Austrian consultants engaged by Proparco), reviewed FBN’s climate action journey across all implementation areas.

The workshop empowered key departments – including credit risk, human capital management, the FirstAcademy learning institute, corporate banking, personal banking, SME banking, procurement, branch operations, and general services – to gain a deeper understanding of climate-related risks within their respective processes.

FBN Holdings soars under Femi Otedola, net profit up 316 percent

Under the strategic leadership of Femi Otedola, FBN Holdings has not only maintained its position as a top Nigerian banking group but has also expanded its influence. Femi Otedola, who is also driving change in the Nigerian power sector through his company Geregu Power, has played a key role in steering FBN Holdings toward these exceptional results.

This commitment to climate action coincides with another stellar financial performance for FBN Holdings. The company reported a record-breaking net profit of N208.2 billion ($149.7 million) in the first quarter of its 2024 fiscal year, a staggering 315.8 percent increase compared to N50.1 billion ($36 million) in the same period last year. This remarkable growth is attributed to multiple factors, with a surge in interest income playing a leading role.