Sterling Bank to Empower 2.500 Women Entrepreneurs, Moves to Credit Nigerians with N1m

• Sterling Bank is moving to empower about 2,500 Nigerian women with the OneWoman initiative
• The bank is partnering with the International Finance Corporation (IFC) to launch the initiative under Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women online scheme
• The development follows the bank’s Always-On launch, which credits N1 million to customers at a reduced interest rate

Legit.ng’s Pascal Oparada has reported on tech, energy, stocks, investment and the economy for over a decade.

Sterling Bank has continued to set the pace as the Managing Director, Abubakar Suleiman, said over the weekend that the financial institution is extending credit to all its customers.

Suleiman, who engaged with his followers on X, said customers could access N1 million at a 48-hour zero-cost window, a one per cent flat fee after 48 hours and a monetary policy rate (MPR), including seven per cent after seven days.

Sterling Bank launches other initiatives

He said the conditions reflect Sterling Bank’s fair credit access.

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Legit.ng reported that the bank recently cancelled online transfer charges for its customers.

It also launched free bus rides for Nigerians, setting the pace for competition among its peers.

Experts say with the latest offering, the bank is democratising access to credit.

OneWoman initiative to empower 2,500 entrepreneurs

Additionally, Sterling Bank’s OneWoman scheme seeks to empower 2,500 female business owners by giving them free access to the Goldman Sachs 10,000 Women online programme.

Partnering with the International Finance Corporation, the bank’s initiative seeks to equip female entrepreneurs with practical tools for business growth, covering essential areas such as financial management, marketing, leadership and expansion plans.

The scheme is peculiar for its emphasis on real-time application, which allows entrepreneurs to implement learning for tangible business improvements.

The Guardian reports that Sterling Bank’s head of consumer finance, John Obichie, stressed the impact female entrepreneurs have at the heart of shaping the economy and the bank’s future.

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Sterling Bank launches AlwaysOn

The move comes after the bank launched Always-On, a new feature on May 1, 2025, to remove barriers to financial freedom and empower Nigerians to move in uncertain times.

The bank disclosed that AlwaysOn is a specialised invitation-only feature for customers who maintain an active OneBank account for a certain period.

According to Suleiman, AlwaysOn is about freedom and dignity, backing its customers with the trust and tools to act when the need arises.

He stressed that AlwaysOn is not a product but a shift in how Sterling Bank supports its customers.

The Sterling Bank boss said the financial institution is building a financial ecosystem designed for momentum, urgency, and dreams to wait.

Sterling Bank introduces free bus rides

Legit.ng earlier reported that regular Lagos residents were greeted with an unexpected present recently as Sterling Bank launched a free bus rides.

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The program, which started as a campaign against bank transfer fees, has now spread to the streets when the bank started providing free bus rides to its clients along important Lagos thoroughfares.

This will be done throughout May 2025 to facilitate workers' return from the May Day holidays.

Proofreading by Kola Muhammed, copy editor at Legit.ng.

Source: Legit.ng