First National Bank Ghana Limited has announced a 2% interest rate cut on loans to all existing customers from 01 April 2020 for the length of time until a loan is due of all Ghana-cedi denominated loan facilities.
According to the bank, the offer, which is part of the bank’s #RealHelp package is to cushion customers impacted by COVID-19.
#RealHelp is a range of relief packages put together by the bank to mitigate the impact of the novel Coronavirus on the businesses and individuals.
In a statement issued by the Bank on 14th April, 2020, Chief Executive Officer, Richard Hudson explained that, “Under the #RealHelp initiative, First National Bank Ghana Limited is offering at least a 2% interest rate cut on loans to all existing customers from 1st April 2020 for the tenor of all Ghana-cedi denominated loan facilities. Here, all cedi denominated loans at First National Bank Ghana Limited are linked to the Ghana Reference Rate (GRR) which is published monthly on the first Wednesday of every month. Loans to customers are quoted at the GRR plus a margin. With the recently announced drop in the MPC rate, the GRR dropped by 1.20% and the bank then slashed its margin by a further 1% across all cedi related loans, bringing the total reduction to 2.20%.”
The Bank also announced that customers have the opportunity to apply for repayment holidays, where a temporary moratorium will be placed on the loan repayments for up to six months.
“Customers have also been given an option to apply for repayment holidays, where a temporary moratorium will be placed on the loan repayments for up to six months. This is expected to give customers some leeway to reorganise their finances which may be negatively affected by the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.
This can be assessed on the First National Bank app or by using the quick code *877# on its Cellphone Banking platform.
He further noted that, “the entire process has been digitized so there’s absolutely no paperwork and that also means response times will be faster,”
“We believe these interventions will assist customers who have demonstrated sound banking behaviour, such as consistently honouring their repayments to the bank before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic,” he added.
Head, Marketing and Corporate Affairs at First National Bank Ghana, Delali Dzidzienyo, also stated that, the bank appreciates that in these tough times, they need to stand together with customers by offering them the #RealHelp they need to make it through these tough economic times.
“With these initiatives, we want to consolidate our position as the most helpful bank in Ghana. We are offering our customers a real helping hand in a very difficult time as many businesses will not perform as well as they had hoped this year; and many individuals will not earn the monthly incomes that they normally expect. The #RealHelp we are offering is not a one-size-fits-all solution but is tailored to each customer’s unique situation which ensures that we give them the necessary help they that need in this particular circumstance.”
Following the outbreak of the virus, business activities across the world have fallen sharply in addition to disruptions in supply chains.
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