Story Behind Kebbi Home Savings And Loans Limited In 25 Years Of Existence – MD/CEO

The Managing Director/ Chief Executive Officer (MD/CEO) of   Kebbi State Home Savings and Loans Limited, Dr Ahmed Musbahu Bunza, in this interview with our Correspondent, KABIR  WURMA, shares insights of the 25-year-old Kebbi-owned financial institution being the second of its type in the entire northern Nigeria

This financial institution was established in 1995.  What are the major achievements you recorded in 2025?

All we have to say, as a management team during our two and a half years on behalf of the owners, governing council, and board members of the company, is that we have achieved critical milestones that have indeed saved the institution from backwardness that once threatened it.

When we came on board, the bank was facing serious unresolved issues. But today, the threat has been completely eliminated as a result of the joint efforts of owners, the board, and the management team, who rolled up their sleeves to ensure that we save the 21-year-old institution established by our fathers when Kebbi State was created.

And thanked God, we have achieved that. Though not in all key areas. But if you check, when we came on board, we were operating manually; today, that’s history. We are completely online now. Any customer of Kebbi Home Savings and Loans Limited can now enjoy our digital revolution, initiated by the management and approved by the board.

With this innovation, how can you compare your Capital in 2024 to that of 2025?

Actually, I will not be quoting figures for you, but when we came on board, we met negative shareholders’ funds. However, that is now history as we have completely reversed that. There was also the threat of regulators, but today that threat no longer exists because of the efforts of the major shareholders, as represented by His Excellency, the governor of Kebbi State, Dr Nasir Idris Kauran Gwandu. So, the bank today is in good standing, and what remains, we believe, will be no time before we are 100 per cent adequate.

What are the derivable benefits of banking with your institution?

Kebbi State Home Savings And Loans Limited is a specialised institution created purpursely for housing finance, we were established to make sure that we provide long-term funding so that the people of Kebbi State and beyond can have deposit for one of the necessity in life which is Housing. As you all know, housing requires long-term financing processes, and as a civil servant, your salary would not be enough to help you construct or own a house without additional funds. And if you go to other commercial banks, the loans they offer will not be sufficient to help you buy or own a house.

Therefore, you require long-term funding. So, that is why we are here. And as a bank, we have successfully achieved that feat because of the historical estates we have in Kebbi State, which have been successful as a result of the intervention of the Kebbi State government through our bank, from Gwadangaji quarters to Gesse Phase I and Gesse Phase II. And we are active partners with the Kebbi State government in Aleiro quarters and other estates, so we have achieved greatly in housing.

Equally important now, there is a programme by the Federal government under its agencies that is National Pencom Commission ( PENCOM) that stipulated that as a RSA holder what we called Retirement Savings Account due to this contributory pension scheme, you can assess your 25% as an equity contributor for a housing loan through mortgage bank,  like Kebbi Home Savings And Loans Limited, we are 32 in Nigeria and only 2 in North-western States to have successfully achieved that.

And we have also possessed over 15 billion naira under that program within the last quarter of 2025. So, I think we have achieved our mandate in this regard, and we will continue to manage and bridge the housing deficit gap with the help of the Kebbi State government.

Success always comes with challenges. What are those challenges facing the institution now?

As I mentioned earlier, one of the major challenges we faced when we came on board was manual operations, poor staff motivation, a lack of board members, limited capital, and regulatory threats, but thank God we have now solved those challenges.

That is to say, we are now on e-banking through ATMs like any other bank; board members were appointed by the present administration of Governor Nasir Idris Kauran Gwandu, and our capital has risen appreciably. Equally important is the fact that we are now free from the threat of regulators. Permit me to use this opportunity to thank the state government under Governor Nasir Idris and the management Staff of Kebbi Home and Savings, and the entire people of Kebbi for the position we find ourselves in today.

Now we can compete with other commercial banks not only in the state but also nationwide. I am therefore appealing to ur Staffs to be more proactive in discharging their responsibilities in order to continue achieving the objectives of the banking.