The Chief Executive Officer of BaoBaB Microfinance Limited, Mr. Kazeem Olanrewaju Rashid, has said that the bank plans to disburse a tune of N500 million to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) to boost economic activities in the country.
Rashid, who stated this at the bank’s Customers’ Day recently, in Lagos, said the SMEs are the prime movers of any economy around the globe.
He stated that the bank has been at the centre of driving creativity, capacity and capital for SMEs business in recognition of its immense contribution to national development.
“We would also continue to ensure that we provide the necessary opportunities and collaborations to empower our women and youths to become successful business leaders of tomorrow,” he said.
Rashid noted that all countries are trying hard to develop entrepreneurs, promote SMEs and facilitating their graduation into large industries for rapid industrialisation.
He said currently, the institution is supporting SME development in the country in order to facilitate employment generation and poverty alleviation. The BaoBaB boss who explained the meaning of BaoBaB as a tree that provides shelter, said the financial institution, formerly known as microcredit, has grown beyond loan to other products offerings, stressing that its customers will have enough funds to grow their businesses.
He added that the bank has successfully disbursed over 112,000 loans to the tune of N32 billion and has over 400 staff on its payroll to effectively manage its clients’ portfolios.
Introducing the bank’s loan products to customers, he said the lender has among its product offerings, mini micro loans ranging from N20,000 to N99,000; N100,000 to N500,000 and SME loans ranging from N500,000 to N40 million.
He noted that recently the bank gave a loan of N40 million to one of its customers, which it intends to increase if any customer meets the requirement.