CBN Charges Banks To Cut Charges To Attract Millennials, Gen-Z

To attract millennials and Gen-Z, who form the larger part of the country’s population, into the financial sector, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) urged banks to reduce bank charges and tailor banking services to meet their needs.

Deputy governor, Financial System Stability, CBN, Aisha Ahmad made the call at the Millennial & Gen Z Banking Survey Report Launch titled ‘Tapping the Millennial & Gen Z Markets: Redefining Opportunities for Financial Services Growth’ by FITC over the weekend in Lagos.

She noted that, with Nigeria’s population largely dominated by the Millennials and Gen-Z, it has become pertinent for banks to take providing services suited for that demographic if they are to remain in business for the long run.

“A lot has happened in the industry and there has been a lot of transformation, a lot of innovation, and digital technology has come into change the way financial services are delivered. Also, most importantly to change the way people and different segments use financial services. And that is why this report is important because it focuses on a very important and strategic segment for banks and non-bank financial institutions and that is the millennials and Gen-Z.

“Nigeria’s population is significantly youthful so this is a very huge target area for financial institutions. The report provides insights into the way they relate to financial institutions, their expectations from their banks and other financial service providers, the kind of services they want, and the kind of value-added solution they expect,” she pointed out.

On charges, she said: “the CBN provides guidelines on the maximum financial service providers should take. Our expectation is that as they continue to use shard services because the conversation on charges is the cost of providing financial services. So as the costs reduce, we expect that those costs reduction should be passed on to customers and that should encourage more people to patronise the system.

“We continue to encourage banks to share services, to be more efficient by using technology and with that efficiency comes savings and we expect that savings to impact positively.”

Also, the managing director/CEO of Wema Bank, Mr. Ademola Adebise was represented by the chief digital officer, Wema Bank, Mr. Olusegun Adeniyi in unveiling the report said: “ reduction of bank charges and improved services. According to the survey, millennials and Gen-Z both requested for reduction in bank charges and interest rates on loans and on other product services and offerings from financial institutions.”

On her part, the managing director/chief executive officer FITC, Ms. Chizor Malize said: “this survey was necessitated by the rapid changes within the financial services sector, occasioned by the advent of fintech in Nigeria.

“With fintech steadily gaining ground within the Millennial and Gen-Z markets over the last few years, it became apparent that we needed a clear understanding of these target groups’ perception of traditional players within the Financial Services Sector.”

“We recognised the need to speak directly to the Millennial and Gen Z market, to gain a clear understanding of their perception of traditional financial services, as well as their expectations and needs. We deployed this survey bearing in mind that this demographic is radically different from any other before them. Their unique needs and expectations of financial services are beyond the norm,” she added.