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Success Story of Banks’ Diaspora Account Products

Lucky Fiakpa
22nd Sept. 2008

Some years back, Nigerians living abroad wanting to execute some projects had to rely on relatives, some of whom ended up swindling them. Lucky Fiakpa reports that the story has now changed for the better with the various products designed by banks to assist them.

Rev. Segun Agbetuyi, former chairman of Spring Bank Plc once told a gripping story of a Nigerian resident abroad who sent some money home to his father to help him build a house since he was about to return finally to Nigeria. The innocent man religiously sent this money over a period of time believing his father was actually building a house for him. Unfortunately, he returned to Nigeria to find that no house was built and as a matter of fact, the father had used the money he sent to improve his own fortune. Thoroughly disappointed in his father’s action, Agbetuyi said, the man returned to the UK in anger.

Agbetuyi, who at the time of telling this story was the Managing Director and chief executive of the now defunct Owena Bank, quickly came up with a banking product to help Nigerians abroad from falling victims to similar circumstances. That perhaps marked the beginning of what is today known as Diaspora Account that many banks are now promoting and Nigerians abroad are better off for this.

Diaspora Account is today a success story going by the accounts of some of the banks promoting it.

Some years back, Nigerians living abroad found it rather difficult repatriating money back home. Many who did in the hope of wanting to execute some projects had to rely on relatives, who most of the time ended up swindling them.

The story is now different as Nigerians abroad can send money home through the various banks operating the Diaspora Accounts and go to sleep believing that not only is their money safe but whatever project they intend to execute would be done with the right instructions given.

Besides the traditional Domiciliary Account, which can be operated by anybody whether living at home or abroad, banks now have special products designed to meet the peculiar banking and investment needs of Nigerians who, though live abroad, would like to maintain relationship with their fatherland.

Some of the banks involved include Bank PHB with its Nigerians in the Diaspora Account (NIDA); UBA Plc with its Non Resident Nigerians (NRN) Banking Services; Oceanic Bank’s Nigerians in Diaspora (NID); Fidelity Bank Plc and Diamond Bank Plc with Diamond Reach.

In fact, if statements from the various banks are to be taken as sufficient guide, then the Nigerian banks must have done a great service to Nigerians living abroad.

Bank PHB NIDA

Nigerians in the Diaspora Account (NIDA) is a bouquet product by Bank PHB. It was launched in 2003 and it allows Nigerians living abroad to open and operate a bank account at home without residing at or coming home. “You know we were the first to launch this type of product and the responses of Nigerians in the US, Europe and other foreign countries to the product have been very encouraging.

“You know some people don’t want their relations to know what they are doing these days. The belief that the bank would give them this confidentiality has further endeared more Nigerians abroad to the product,” Charles Odibo told Financial Vanguard in a chat.

With the NIDA, Nigerians abroad can easily repatriate money to Nigeria with an assurance of a safe haven for their savings. There is also the convenience of operations as account holders can send their instructions via the Internet.

Holders also enjoy mobility of funds, as they can transfer money from anywhere to any account anywhere in the world. They also have the option of choosing from different variant such as savings, current and investment accounts, depending on individual requirements.

The Diaspora Target Account (DTA) is a savings account for people who wish to build up their savings towards a target project. Here, account holders can only make one withdrawal a month with the Diaspora Investment Account which has two variants – savings and fixed deposit accounts where holders are issued with certificates of deposits.

The bank has also given a special flavour to the NIDA by introducing the Diaspora Partners Account, which operates on the concept of network marketing. It affords account holders the opportunity to earn bonus by introducing other people to open a Diaspora Partners Account. Holders can build a team by introducing other people to open the account and automatically become a team leader. The people introduced become the team members and as a team leader, you get paid monthly interest on the average balances in the account of your team members.

Fidelity Bank Diaspora Account

Fidelity Bank Plc’s has recorded huge success with its Diaspora Account product. Currently, the bank is handling the execution of the African Heart Hospital being promoted by a consortium of five Nigerian specialists based in the US. It is believed that at the completion of the hospital, the five Nigerian specialists may be relocating home to contribute to the health sector growth of the country.

Apart from that, many Nigerians abroad, also through this product, took part in the various public offers that took place between 2005 and now. This was made possible through the Diaspora Share Purchase which allows Nigerians abroad to purchase shares traded on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) with ease.

With the bank’s Diaspora Home Solutions, account holders can avail themselves of the bank’s mortgage facilities for real estates in major Nigerian cities.

Besides these, the bank still provides the traditional Domiciliary Account, which can be operated on a minimum account balance of $200; Diaspora Investment Account with minimum account balance of $5,000 and the Diaspora Current Account with minimum account balance equivalent of N20,000.00. All of these accounts attract premium interest rates, access to personal Internet banking for 24 hours, seven days a week. Holders can also issue standing orders for transactions and remittances to the bank.

Diamond Bank’s Diamond Reach

Diamond Reach is a product designed to offer Nigerians in the Diaspora the opportunity of maintaining accounts in their home country with ease. The product is also said to have recorded considerable success. The account can be in the dollar, pound, and euro currency with a link account in Nigeria, denominated in naira.

From the naira account, domestic needs such as third party payments, bill payments, and money transfers can be met at a cheaper rate and more conveniently. It also provides the account holders unhindered access to investor advisory services.

According to the bank, the Diamond Reach account, can be operated easily as it requires minimal documentation and all the formalities can be performed over the Internet. Being mainly an e-banking product, holders of the Diamond Reach as well as other banks’ Diaspora accounts have 24-hours’ unrestricted access to their accounts via the bank’s e-channels, mobile and Internet banking. Customers also get transaction alert by SMS and email on any transaction executed on the account.

The product, the bank said also serves as an in-road for non-resident Nigerians to actively participate in the economic development of Nigeria and thereby impact directly on the living standards of their siblings living in Nigeria.

It encourages those living abroad to be in direct touch with their loved ones at home. It also seeks to address the anxiety experienced by those living abroad concerning means of sending money home, as well as those who want to invest back home and literally be in control of such investments.

Oceanic Bank’s NID

Oceanic Bank has a variety of products and services tailored for Nigerians in Diaspora as well with value added banking solutions ranging from day-to-day transactional banking services to complex financial investment structures. These include NID Domiciliary Account, which is a high yield domiciliary account. Its minimum account opening balance is $250 or its equivalent in the British pound sterling or the euro.

Some unique features of the Diaspora account are its relatively higher interest rate than its counterparts for home residents as well as flexibility in terms of currency of operation. In Oceanic Bank as in other banks, the account is available in naira or foreign currencies such as the US dollars, pounds sterling and euro and attracts interest rate of 0.5 per cent above regular domiciliary account rates.

At account holders’ instructions, the bank can buy shares of companies quoted on the floor of NSE at the prevailing exchange rates to the currency. Oceanic Bank also attaches a designated Relationship Manager to each account holder.

Other variants of the Oceanic Bank NID account are NID Invest Account, a fixed deposit or tenured-saving account operable on a minimum opening balance of $5000 or its equivalent in pounds sterling, euro or naira, and the NID Gold Account.

UBA NRN

UBA is also playing a fundamental role in facilitating linkages between Nigerians in Diaspora and Nigeria in the drive to enable Nigerians living abroad to benefit from high yield investment opportunities available in the country. The bank’s Non Resident Nigerian (NRN) Banking Services is a special purpose vehicle through which Nigerian citizens in Diaspora can invest in the country.

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