One of Nigeria’s biggest financial institutions, FirstBank of Nigeria Limited said it has recorded over 9.5 million customers in the *894# Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD), Quick Banking service.
FirstBank’s Group Executive, e-Business & Retail Products, Chuma Ezirim, who disclosed this in a statement in Lagos, said this figure is a clear demonstration of Firstbank’s leadership in electronic Banking in Nigeria.
He explained that the USSD banking service, launched in January 2015, is an easy to use, convenient, fast, user-friendly mobile banking channel through which various banking activities are carried out on a mobile phone – across the four major GSM network operators in the country – without the use of the internet.
“At FirstBank, we are excited about the impact our innovative solutions are making in the Nigerian payment landscape. Our *894# USSD banking has been a viable platform through which we take our banking services to the doorstep of our customers, right on the palm of their hands, without the limitation of an internet connection. We remain committed to creating various avenues to enable Nigerians to carry out various financial activities conveniently, safely and securely anytime, anywhere in Nigeria,” he said
Ezirim added that with the *894# USSD, customers are able to enjoy a wide range of banking services, which include Data and Airtime top-up for self and third-party individuals, Quick Balance Enquiry, Fund Transfers, BVN Enquiry, BVN Linkage, Mini-statement, Account Number Enquiry, Account Opening, Merchant Payment and FirstAdvance loan service.
The FirstAdvance loan service enables salary earners to take a loan up to 50 percent of their monthly salary.