BOI Disbursed N496.72bn Loans to 75,809 Beneficiaries in One Year
The Chairman of the shareholders committee of the Bank of Industry, Muhammed Bala, revealed that no fewer than 75,809 beneficiaries received credit funding worth N496.72bn from the Bank in 2023.
The loans were disbursed to beneficiaries which include large, medium, small and micro enterprises, creating approximately 2,198,953 direct and indirect jobs across the country.
He disclosed the figure at the 64th Annual General Meeting, held on Wednesday in Abuja.
This was as the bank announced a profit before tax of N153.81bn for 2023, marking a 117.69 per cent increase from the previous year’s N70.7bn representing the highest in the history of the bank.
He said the bank’s total assets surged by 64.6 per cent, rising from N2.37tn to N3.91n. It said this was indicative of BOI’s strengthened financial foundation and expanded capacity to support Nigeria’s industrial sector.
The committee chairman added that BOI’s total equity experienced a substantial boost, growing by 57.7 per cent from N427bn to N678bn while loans and advances witnessed a remarkable increase of 41.5 per cent, growing from N803.6bn to N1.14tn
This, he noted, reflects the bank’s ongoing efforts to provide essential financial support to businesses across various sectors.
Bala said, “In furtherance to its drive to boost job creation through its interventions, the BOI significantly increased its disbursements to large, medium, small and micro enterprises, advancing credit amounting to N496.717 billion to 75,809 beneficiaries. These efforts have had a substantial socio-economic impact, creating approximately 2,198,953 direct and indirect jobs across the country.”
A breakdown of the disbursement further showed that 27,645 beneficiaries got a loan disbursement of N10bn, 7,527 retailers got loans worth N42.9bn while fintech platforms received a loan of N350m.
A statement from the bank added, “Through direct lending, as well as fund management on behalf of our strategic partners, the Bank disbursed the sum of N496.717 billion to 75,809 beneficiaries in 2023. This resulted in the creation of an estimated 2,198,953 direct and indirect jobs.
“Smallholder Farmer Financing Product: This is a value-chain financing product that connects farmers to guaranteed market off-takers. In 2023, the Bank disbursed N10 billion to 27,645 farmers. So far, 98,906 farmers have received financial support up to 23.66 billion under this scheme.
“MSME Distributor Finance Programme: This programme was introduced by the bank in 2021 the programme is designed to provide much-needed working capital financing to micro businesses for the purchase and supply of Made-in- Nigeria products and services through intermediary companies. In 2023, the bank disbursed 42.9 billion to 7,527 retailers and other micro-enterprises. So far, a total of N6.9bn has been disbursed to 14,527 micro-enterprises as of December 2023.
“Fintech/Digital Lending Product: This product was introduced by the bank in 2021, to support micro-enterprises by leveraging collaborations with credible Fintech platforms In 2023, the bank, disbursed N350 million, while a total sum of N1.05bn has been disbursed to 1,415 beneficiaries since inception.”
In his remarks, the Managing Director, Dr Olasupo Olusi, noted that through the bank’s disbursement lines and managed intervention programmes, including the Smallholder Farmer Financing Product, MSME Distributor Finance Programme, Fintech/Digital Lending Product, Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus, the Business Resilience Assistance for Value-Adding Enterprise amongst others, the bank has not only contributed to President Tinubu’s “goals of economic recovery and job creation but also have empowered Nigerian enterprises, especially the micro and small ones, to remain in operation sustainably”.
He said that the bank would continue to implement its medium-term corporate strategy for 2022-2024, aiming to sustain its positive trajectory and further bolster the nation’s industrial sector.
