By Chernor Alimamy Kamara
The Managing Director of Sierra Leone Commercial Bank (SLCB) Yusifu Sillah has acknowledged the importance of the electronic banking system, saying that the bank’s key objective now is to move into cashless payment systems or artificial intelligence banking for their customers.
He made this statement during the launch of the “Mi Yone Seniors Account” and “Mi Yone Retirement Account” products at the bank’s conference hall in Freetown on Wednesday 15th February, as part of events to mark the institution’s 50th anniversary celebration.
According to Sillah, the bank’s current threat is the rate at which mobile money or cashless payment is expanding around the globe. He said they have started rising up to the challenge by embarking on building the needed infrastructures.
He urged customers to patronize SLCB bank for efficient and reliable services.
Chairperson for the anniversary, Olayinka Phillips stated that, they cannot overemphasize reasons to celebrate 50 years of the bank’s existence in an economy where global banks are folding up. She said they have decided to put up with the challenges and move on.
She said the bank has maintained its brand and that they have made progress in the digital space and above all kept their customers. She urged banking staff to seize this opportunity to direct their energies and resources to better improve service delivery for their customers and further reach the unbanked population of the country.
“This is a practical and moral challenge of banking of our time; our obligations to our customers must be revisited,” she said.
She encouraged the SLCB family which she said is not limited to the board, the management and staff of the institution, but includes all Sierra Leoneans to be proud of the enduring legacy of the bank, and taking advantage of the new products being unveiled.
She challenged the bank’s stakeholders to be inspired by the jubilee celebrations to dream of taking the unique services across the sub-region in the true spirit of the Mano River Union and ECOWAS protocols. She assured that, by the next jubilee, SLCB would have become a truly formidable Pan African Bank.
Glenna Adeyoola in presenting the new products stated that the bank always listens to customers and it is in that light they decided to bring in two products focused on the retired pensioners who are saving with SLCB.
She affirmed that the bank currently has a total percentage of 60-70% pensioners that are saving with them and it is in that light they decided to have a product that will cater for them to save more in the form of a savings account. She said the product has an 8% increase in the Turnover Tax (TOT) and a current account that has a deduction in the TOT.
She pointed out that the bank also focuses on serving those pensioners more, due to the fact that they are a bit slow in what they are doing. She said some of the Seniors Account features start with a minimum of NLe 50 and a Commission on Turnover (COT) of 1.5% which is 50% lower than the normal COT.
Adeyoola also presented the “Me Yone Retirement Account” which she said is a savings account that allows the holder to save without withdrawals for a particular period and which is for the holder’s retirement-when they stop working. She said savings on this account can be done whether the person is employed or self-employed and can be in the form of standing order.
She highlighted the features of the “Mi Yone Retirement Account” that include starting up with a minimum deposit of NLE 50 and a NASSIT Card, with the holder to produce a NASSIT identification card.used to open the account. The account has a COT of 1.5% which is 50% lower than the normal COT, and an 8% interest rate for the savings account.
She said the bank will dedicate a teller to take care of the customers who cannot stand on cues. She went on to say that the retirement account is for anyone who is planning to save towards their retirement and that it has a higher interest rate of 10 percent.
SLCB was the first indigenous bank to be established in the country in 1973.
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