ESG: FIRSTBANK WINS 2024 EUROMONEY AWARD FOR NIGERIA’S BEST BANK

<h4>ESG<&sol;h4>&NewLine;<p>&nbsp&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><strong><a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;openlife&period;ng&sol;">OpenLife Nigeria<&sol;a><&sol;strong> reports that FirstBank&comma; the West African premier financial institution and financial inclusion services provider has emerged the winner of the prestigious Euromoney Award for Nigeria&&num;8217&semi;s Best Bank in Environmental&comma; Social&comma; and Governance &lpar;ESG&rpar;&comma; reinforcing its position as a leader in sustainable banking and finance practices in its 130 years of existence&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Following a rigorous and highly competitive selection process&comma; FirstBank was awarded Nigeria&&num;8217&semi;s Best Bank for ESG in 2024 by the respected and renowned Euromoney Awards for Excellence&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>This award honours FirstBank&&num;8217&semi;s contributions and unwavering commitment to Environmental&comma; Social&comma; and Governance investments in Nigeria&comma; facilitated through innovative financial solutions and initiatives&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Euromoney recognized FirstBank’s significant progress amongst other areas in the implementation of an ESG management system&comma; which facilitated the screening of N4&period;2 trillion new transactions for potential ESG risks in 2024&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>In support of Nigeria’s green transition&comma; FirstBank funded a &dollar;10 million solar energy project&comma; expanding access to off-grid solar solutions in Africa and Asia through a pay-as-you-go model&semi; committing N16 billion to develop four modular independent power plants for a major beer manufacturer&comma; enabling it to shift from diesel generators to more sustainable energy sources and significantly reducing production costs&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Additionally&comma; FirstBank started a tree planting campaign in partnership with the Nigeria Conservation Foundation to plant over 50&comma;000 trees in 2024 demonstrating the Bank’s dedication to ESG as a business agenda&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Expressing her delight on the recognition&comma; the Group Head&comma; Marketing &amp&semi; Corporate Communications&comma; Mrs&period; Folake Ani-Mumuney said&colon; &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;<em><strong>We are thrilled to receive the Euromoney Award for Nigeria&&num;8217&semi;s Best Bank in ESG&period; <&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><em><strong>&&num;8220&semi;This recognition is a testament to the power of enabling Giants in our employees&comma; businesses&comma; and communities to achieve success&period;<&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><em><strong>&&num;8220&semi;At FirstBank&comma; we believe that sustainability is a driver for growth and innovation&period; <&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><em><strong>&&num;8220&semi;Our approach to sustainability is built on three pillars&colon; Citizenship&comma; Stakeholder Management&comma; and Impact Management&period; <&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><em><strong>This award validates our efforts to create a sustainable and inclusive future for all our stakeholders&comma; and we are committed to advancing continuous positive impact in the marketplace&comma; workplace&comma; environment&comma; and communities we serve<&sol;strong><&sol;em>&period;”<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>According to Euromoney&comma; the &OpenCurlyDoubleQuote;<em><strong>Awards for Excellence” – is the definitive annual awards programme of the global banking industry&period;<&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><em><strong>&&num;8220&semi;The awards represent the highest distinction to the banks and bankers who matter most in an industry where differentiation is highly sought after and exceptionally difficult to demonstrate&period;”<&sol;strong><&sol;em><&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Amongst other awards&comma; FirstBank recently added to its awards kitty&comma; Best SME Bank in Nigeria and Best Bank in Africa&comma; Best Private Bank in Nigeria&comma; and Best Private Bank for Sustainable Investment in Africa by Global Finance&comma; for its exceptional leadership in integrating sustainable practices into its banking operations&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;