Polaris Emerges Top BankIn MSME Lending

LAGOS – Polaris Bank has emerged Nigeria’s topmost lender to the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MS­MEs).

The award recognised Polaris’s longstanding commitment to support­ing MSMEs through sev­eral direct and indirect funding channels.

Expert judges at the in­augural MSME Finance Awards 2024, organised recently said the choice of Polaris Bank as the ‘Best in MSME Lending’ (bank­ing sector) was based on the bank’s provision of sustainable finance and funding to entrepreneurs in the MSMEs sector to grow their businesses.

According to experts, MSMEs are the largest employers in the Nige­rian economy, providing immense contributions to job creation and economic activities.

The contribution of the MSME sector to employ­ment had increased by 3.5 percent.

The International La­bour Organisation (ILO) estimates that MSMEs contribute around 48 per­cent to GDP and around 80 percent of total employ­ment in Nigeria.

Kayode Lawal, man­aging director, Polaris Bank, said that they were honoured to receive the award, recognising their commitment to empower­ing Nigerian MSMEs as they are pivotal to nation­al economic growth, the backbone for large corpo­rations, and drive innova­tion and job creation.

“We are glad that our dedication to providing accessible financing and tailor-made innovative solutions has made a tan­gible impact on the growth and sustainability of these vital businesses,” Lawal said.

He commended Nai­rametrics and The Eco­nomic Forum series for the award and assured of Polaris Bank’s continued commitment to MSMEs empowerment by deliver­ing innovative and excep­tional customer-centric services and solutions that propel Nigeria’s overall economic advancement.

“This award is a moti­vation for us, our strategic focus on MSME lending, driving financial inclu­sion, and promoting Ni­geria’s economic develop­ment remains something we are committed to,’’ La­wal stated.

Polaris Bank has built a footprint in financing MSME by committing billions of naira in loans to support MSME oper­ations in Nigeria, with a huge lending portfolio dedicated to empowering micro, small, and medium businesses meant to grow businesses, create jobs, and build wealth.