Access Bank begins operation in suspended branches

.Urges customers to leverage more of digital channels for transactions

By Afusat Adeoye

As re-opening of the nation’s economy commenced on May 4, 2020, Access Bank Plc has announced plans to resume normal services at its suspended in-branches.

Due to security concerns and regulatory directives by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) during the lockdown, the lender like every other bank suspended operations in some of its branches but now ready to begin a phased reopening of such branches.

This development was contained in a regulatory filing at the Nigerian Stock Exchange on Monday to clarify media reports about alleged plans to close over 300 of its branches in Nigeria and downsize about 75 per cent of its workforce.

In the filing, the bank said as a result of the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, which culminated in government lockdown in many parts of the country, the bank was compelled to suspend normal operations in some branches at different locations in line with the CBN directive.

Also, beyond compliance with regulatory directives, the bank said the decision was informed by the need to protect the health and safety of its customers and employees at vulnerable locations.

“At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown, we suspended in-branch operations at different locations as directed by the CBN and in line with business continuity plans at vulnerable spots, whilst we continued to provide services through our alternative digital platforms,” the bank said.

Beyond the suspension of operations at the branches, the bank said it was yet to apply for nor obtain the approval of the CBN for the closure of any of its branches.

The closure of a bank branch, it explained, is an action that requires the approval of the CBN.

The Company Secretary, Sunday Ekwochi, said the programmed reopening in affected branches was necessary to provide relevant contingency to the overall bank operations should there be any incident arising from the pandemic.

Bearing in mind that the threat of the COVID-19 pandemic was not yet averted, Mr Ekwochi said, the bank would do all that is required to ensure the safety of all its branches in line with the protocol advised by the health authorities.

He urged the bank’s customers to leverage more of the digital channels for their transactions, to justify the significant investment made to ensure availability of service outlets throughout the crisis period and beyond.

On report about the bank’s plan to sack about 75 per cent of its workforce, Mr Ekwochi described it as “baseless and twisted speculation”, and “malicious and a distraction from a genuine and compassionate plan to protect our staff and help keep jobs in the unfolding macroeconomic environment.”