Business
61st FirstBank Lagos Amateur Open Golf Championship Tees Off
In furtherance of its commitment to the development of sports in Nigeria, First Bank of Nigeria Limited has announced that the 61st edition of the FirstBank sponsored Lagos Amateur Golf Championship has been scheduled to tee-off at the golf section of Ikoyi Club 1938 on Friday 18th, to Sunday 20th of November 2022.
To be played over 54-holes (3-days), the FirstBank Lagos Amateur Open Golf Championship is a World Amateur Golf Ranking (WAGR) listed competition that attracts the best golfers from the amateur scene, not only in Nigeria but across the world. The emerging winner of the Championship, the Amateur Champion for the year, also earns points that contribute to their WAGR ranking. The 61st FirstBank Lagos Amateur Open Golf Championship is also supported by Seven-Up Bottling Company, One Spirit Company and Palton Morgan Holdings.
On behalf of the tournament organisers, Ibukun Obatoyinbo, Director Concierge Sports said “FirstBank Lagos Amateur Open Golf Championship has been the premier amateur golf event in West Africa. It is notable that some of the top golf professionals within this environment have been participants & past winners of the Championship. As we mark the 61st edition this year Concierge Sports are committed to the continued promotion & support of the development of the sport in Nigeria. We are confident that a new set of stars will emerge courtesy of FirstBank’s unwavering sponsorship of the Championship. We look forward to an exciting 2022 edition.”
Anticipating the thrills of fun and excitement to be witnessed in the 61st FirstBank Lagos Amateur Open Golf Tournament, Oluwaseyi Otulana, Chief Marketing Officer, Palton Morgan Holdings said “Palton Morgan Holdings is proud to be a partner at the 61st edition of the FirstBank Lagos Amateur Open Golf Championship. The game of golf is truly a game of the masters and as the budding masters converge this year at the Ikoyi Club 1938 Golf Course, a long-standing tradition since the Championship’s inception in 1960, we look forward to an exciting tournament as participants journey from far and near to grace this prestigious event.
We understand that great things come from humble beginnings which is why we are glad to be a part of this year’s event. Palton Morgan as masters in our own right wishes all the participants the best of luck.”
Speaking ahead of the 61st edition, Mrs. Folake Ani-Mumuney Group Head, Marketing and Corporate Communications highlights FirstBank’s consistent role in driving development through sports: ‘’As an institution that is woven into the fabric of the society for nearly 129 years, FirstBank has been at the forefront of the growth and development of sports in Nigeria for decades. Our constant commitment to sports is a demonstration of our belief that sport remains a major vehicle for social and economic development. From infrastructure development, employment generation to social skills, sport remains a unifying force for socio-cultural interaction and development regardless of language, culture and religion.’’
Assuring participants of a memorable tournament, Dr. Anthony Oboh, Golf Captain, Ikoyi club 1938 stated that “It’s our pride and honour to welcome participants to the 61st edition of the FirstBank Lagos Amateur Open Golf Championship, the premier amateur golf event in West Africa. 61 years of continued partnership with FirstBank has been phenomennal. It is a partnership we are proud of and we look forward to fostering for many more decades.
To participants from across Nigeria and Africa, we invite you to enjoy our facilities. This 2022 edition promises to be more exciting and better than those before it. Go swing, enjoy your golf, and we can’t wait to congratulate the Amateur Champion for the year.”
Expressing his appreciation to FirstBank for its unbroken sponsorship through the years, Ademola Mumuney, Chairman, Ikoyi Club 1938 noted that “golfing in Nigeria and particularly Ikoyi Club 1938, cannot be sufficiently described without due recognition of FirstBank’s consistent and unbridled partnership, year over year, for more than six decades. Greatness is well exemplified in this fusion of Golf and FirstBank. I hope other organisations would latch on to this for better enhancement of sports in Nigeria”.
Since its debut, FirstBank Lagos Amateur Open Golf Championship has been the most consistent and premier amateur golf event in West Africa and has produced great champions most of who are competing in the elite professional golf cadre. Last year, the Championship threw up Ilorin based Aminu Kadir who won the landmark edition. It is expected that this year’s edition will produce another great winner.
Other FirstBank-sponsored sporting events include the Georgian Cup of Kaduna Polo Tournament, sponsored for 102 years; the Dala Tennis Hard Court in Kano Club for over 30 years; the Obasanjo Pro-Amateur Golf tournament of Abeokuta Club now in its 6th year. The Bank’s influence in the development of sport in Nigeria is under its First@Sport initiative.
FirstBank, West Africa’s premier financial institution and financial inclusion services provider, is pleased to announce the upcoming edition of the SMEConnect Webinar scheduled to hold on Tuesday, 31 March 2026. The event will equip small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) with the knowledge and tools to harness the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI) for business growth.
This edition is strategically curated to inform and educate SMEs on how AI can be applied to scale their businesses in today’s rapidly evolving digital economy. The chosen theme, “AI for Business Growth: From Adoption to Integration and Scalable Impact,” reflects the growing importance and timeliness of AI as one of the most influential trends shaping the SME business landscape. The session will provide SMEs with actionable insights on how to leverage AI to enhance productivity, streamline operations, strengthen customer engagement, and make smarter, data-driven decisions.
The SMEConnect webinar will feature experts, including Temitope Odude, Senior AI Solutions Architect at Microsoft as a guest speaker. Odude will provide credible and globally relevant perspectives on how SMEs can successfully adopt and integrate AI into their everyday business operations. Other speakers include Abednego Ugwueke, Head of Digital Channels and Ibidun Adedewe, Head of SME Acquisition & Partnerships at FirstBank.
Speaking ahead of the event, Chuma Ezirim, Group Executive, e-Business and Retail Products at FirstBank, said “SMEs are the backbone of the Nigerian economy, and at FirstBank, we recognise that the economy cannot thrive without them. As a committed growth partner to SMEs, this session reinforces our strong focus on innovation, demonstrated through initiatives such as the use of AI‑enabled credit scoring to deliver fast, instant loans to micro‑SMEs, with over ₦1 trillion disbursed to support customers’ financial needs. Building on this foundation, we are equipping business owners with the right knowledge and practical insights on Artificial Intelligence to help them scale in the short term and drive sustainable growth. I encourage every business owner to participate in this session to gain hands‑on guidance on integrating AI into everyday business operations.”
SME owners and entrepreneurs can register for the webinar at https://firstbanknigeria.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_cUr1LhWFQXymTqWtONOOVg
SMEConnect Webinar series is one of FirstBank’s signature platforms for supporting SMEs with practical knowledge and strategic insights. The Bank has consistently won awards for impacting businesses and for providing innovative solutions for customers and other stakeholders, including SMEs.
The Bank was named Best SME Bank in Nigeria and Best SME Bank in Africa by TAB Global Excellence in Retail Finance Awards for 2 years as at 2025. The Bank also won the SME Financier of the Year- Nigeria awarded by The Digital Banker.
FirstBank and the Ministry of Finance Incorporated (MOFI) have concluded plans to bridge housing deficit and empower citizens with credit to own their own homes of choice in any of the 36 states of the Federation plus Federal Capital Territory (FCT). This is through the FirstBank’s MREIF mortgage loan product, which has proved to be an opportunity waiting for Nigerians to grab.
This laudable initiative considers the importance of shelter to Nigerian citizens especially low and middle income earners that have to save for years before they can build for themselves. It aims at delivering homes to those who would apply without stress, putting smiles on the faces of Nigerians now, and during retirement.
Through MREIF, FirstBank will provide eligible customers with access to loans of up to N100 million with a repayment period of up to 20 years, at an attractive interest rate of 9.75% per annum. This is less than the usual interest rate on regular loans which sit at about 27% or more today. The repayment duration of 20 years makes the loan attractive for customers without stress.
The mortgage facility is available to salary account holders, business owners, and diaspora customers.
Interested customers are required to visit the Bank’s website: https://www.firstbanknigeria.com/personal/loans/mreif-home-loan/ where they can find detailed information and begin their journey toward homeownership.
Leading financial institution, Fidelity Bank Plc, has concluded plans to host a high-level virtual webinar focused on helping public institutions to strengthen revenue systems, improve fiscal transparency, and build smarter digital structures for collections, oversight, and accountability.
This event, with the theme, Digital Fiscal Transparency: Unlocking Sub-national Opportunities for International Partners, is billed for Tuesday, March 24, 2026,
The programme is expected to bring together a cross-section of public sector leaders, development institutions, heads of parastatals and agencies, as well as financial experts, to explore practical solutions for stronger public finance management.
It is expected to offer timely insights into how modern revenue infrastructure can help institutions improve efficiency, drive accountability, and support better fiscal outcomes.
The webinar will address key issues facing many public institutions today, including revenue leakages, fragmented collection channels, weak visibility into revenue performance, poor reconciliation processes, and the growing need for more transparent and technology-driven systems.
“As public institutions seek ways to improve internally generated revenue and strengthen public trust, there has been a renewed focus on fiscal transparency.
“This is particularly important in the face of recent macro and micro economic developments with many public sector agencies under pressure to do more with limited resources,” the Divisional Head of Public Sector at Fidelity Bank, Mr Richard Madiebo, said.
“It is against this background that we have conceptualised this session with a particular focus on how digital platforms can support structured invoicing, seamless collections, payment automation, contractor disbursement transparency, real-time revenue oversight, amongst other pertinent areas of revenue mobilisation and administration in Nigeria,” he added
“The webinar forms part of our commitment to provide practical solutions that support public sector transformation and stronger sub-national development. This is in line with Fidelity Bank’s mandate to help individuals to grow, businesses to thrive, and economies to prosper,” Mr Madiebo further disclosed.
Interested participants may register at www.fidelitybank.ng/publicsectorwebinar.
