ELECTRONIC BANKING IN NIGERIA: AN ASSESSMENT OF CHALLENGES AND PROSPECT FROM CONSUMER’S PERSPECTIVE

CHAPTER ONE

1.1             BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Although a lot of research works have been done on the prospect s and challenges of information. Technologies in the banking industry, these research works are board based (E-banking). Opera etal, (2010), posits that, modern banks now realize that  only those that overhaul their payment services delivery and operations are likely to survive and prosper in the 21st century. Connel and Saleh (2004) are of the view that, due to pressure of globalization, consolidation, privatization, deregulation and rapidly changing technology, in order to properly place themselves in favorable positions for competitions and be one of those corporations, to be reckoned within the new century, banks are making use of internet to executes mobile banking, this developed from bringing personal computer (PCS) together to form local and wide area network through client/server technology.

Many banks have installed modern computer interconnectivity that would enable them achieve communications of data and multimedia over internets, intranets and extranets. They also realize that they have to achieve not only management staff, wide computer literacy but what could be called information literacy i.e. knowing how to locate, analysis, store and use information. All staff and managers in a modern bank need to be able to search and gather data from several types of sources, analyze them, select relevant ones and organize them in such a manner to allow them make decisions based on the organized  data, banks future realizes that the banking of nowadays requires more of electronic banking and shuffling and other banking transaction, instead of paper. In other words, paper base transactions are now being replaced by electronic based transaction e.g. the internet. Whether a bank would be successful or not depend on the extent to which it is investing on IT and using it in an innovative manner. This area has been tipped to be a major competitive ground for banks that are operating in the post-consolidation era.

-          What are the major issues needed to be mastered by Nigerian banks in order to compete with the rest of the world?

-          What are the major developments and challenges in the Nigerian banking environment that are affecting the growth of electronic banking?

These are some of the questions that would be addressed in the course of this study. 

1.2             STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

Electronic banking is a driving force that is changing the landscape of the banking environment fundamentally towards a more competitive industry. Electronic banking has blurred the boundaries between different financial institutions, enabled new financial products and services, and made existing financial services available in different package,  (Anderson S. 2000), but the influences of electronic banking go far beyond this.

The developments in electronic banking together with other financial innovativeness are constantly bringing new challenges to finance theory and changing people’s understanding of the financial system.  It is not surprising that in the application of electronic banking in Nigeria, the financial institutions have to face its problems:-

1.      Communication over the internet are insecure and often congested.

2.      The financial institutions would also have to contend with other internet challenges including insecurity, quality of services and some aberrations in electronic finance.

3.      Besides, the existing  banking environment also posses some challenges to the smooth operations of electronic banking in Nigeria. Some of these operational challenges includes. Epileptic power supply, dominance  of cash transaction in the economy, low level of awareness among Nigerian etc. The thrust of this research work shall be to examine the trend of electronic banking in Nigeria and a critical examination of the challenges,  (Danwa P. A 1991)

1.3             OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

Some of the objectives which this research work aims to achieve are as follows:-

1.      To evaluate the prospects of electronic banking in Nigerian banking environment.

2.      To examine the impact of electronic banking on the operations of financial institutions with specific reference to the organization understudy.

3.      To investigate the effect of electronic banking on banker customer relationship.

4.      To proffer solution/recommendations where necessary.

1.4             RESEARCH QUESTIONS

1.      What are the prospects of electronic banking in first bank plc, Kaura Namoda branch?

2.      What are the impacts of electronic banking on the operation of financial institutions with specific reference to the organization understudy?

3.      To what extend has electronic banking affect customer and their relationship with the organsiation?

1.5             SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

-          This study is significance because it would help to enlighten operators in the banking industry and other concerned individuals and organization’s adoption of electronic banking.

-          The research shall basically identify the technical and operational challenges facing electronic banking in Nigeria banking environment and suggests ways by which they could be tackled.

-          The study is significance to lecturers in the sense that, the lecturer valuable time that would have been wasted in the process of compiling and processing students notes has been reduced as a result of the advent of E-banking system compared to when operating manually.

-          It is also important to researchers and students because, it reduced the stress of consulting series of textbooks and travelling from place to place looking for information, thereby provides avenue for browsing, thus, make the work to be done at ease.  

1.6             SCOPE  AND LIMITATION OF THE STUDY

In pursuance of the objective of the study , attention shall be focused on electronic banking among other electronic commerce implementation. In order to conduct an empirical investigation into the adoption of electronic banking in Nigeria, this study shall examine the nature of the electronic banking operations in first bank of Nigeria plc. The research work intends to identify the problems and prospects of the application of E-banking system and the regulatory/supervisory challenges associated with its use in the banking industry in Nigeria. It also look at the role being played by information technology (IT) in banking environment and methods used by the banks with the electronic banking system which is presently the most favorable and quickest form of banking.

In the course of this research work some constraints are encountered in trying to know the role of electronic banking and its associate d challenges and prospects in Nigerian banking environment. The major challenge were with the staff because they are unwilling to give out data concerning their operations that they consider as a private issue and believe that it is waste of time.

Secondly, due to financial constraint a reasonable wide area was not covered. Another constraint is the volume of academic work and getting the required people from whom data were to be collected pose many problems.

1.7             HISTORICAL BACKGROUND OF THE CASE STUDY

According to  (www.firstbanknigplc_ng.kauranamodabrancknig), First bank was established in 1894 by Sir, Alfred Johnson. It started with the name, Bank of British West Africa, then five years later, a branch was opened in Lagos Nigeria and its name was Bank of British West Africa. It was still the same until after independence 1960 that it was now renamed Standard Bank of Nigeria Plc.

In 1961 and 1976, thereafter, there was a change of name again, this time, it was given First Bank of Nigeria Limited, after indigenization by the indigenization decree when part of the foreign investors were compelled to sell reasonable percentage out of their share investment in Nigerian until 1983 when  it because First Bank Nigeria Plc. The name which has been used up till date, presently, First Bank is having 386 branches in Nigeria with  one branch in London, with other subsidiaries company like P.N Merchant Bankers, First Registry Nigeria Limited etc . The establishment of Kaura Namoda First Bank which is along Sabon  Gari was in the year 1990, it was to facilitate the growing rate  of trade of various commodity engaged   in extensive Trading activities. Mr. Godwin A. Ameh was the first customer who deposited N 5,000 as a contractor to finance his business. The Kaura Namoda branch which was formally located in Sabon Gari has been  moved to their permanent site in Kaura Nomada main town by Sahin

Kari road in August, 2011 due to the reason they termed to be “personal”. Its current structure of operation divides  its staff into three segments made up of the public, marketing and operations departments which totals up of 16 staff, they record the high volume of customers patronizing them.   

1.8       DEFINITION OF TERMS

v Automated Teller Machine (ATM):  Gives customers easy access to his/her cash whenever he/she needs it (24 hours a day 7days a week).

v Internet banking: With a PC connected to the bank via the internet, the product empowers a customer to transact banking business when where and how he/she wants with little or no interaction with the bank physically.

v Mobile Banking: Offer customers the freedom of banking with mobile phone. The product keep a customer in touch with his/her finances all the time and anywhere.

v Electronic  banking/E-Banking: This refers to the use of computer and telecommunication to enable banking transactions to be done by telephone or computer.

v Electronic funds transfer (EFT): this involves transfer  of money from one bank account to another by means of communication links.

v Smart Cards) Is a plastic card that contains a micro processor that store ands update information, typically used in performing financial transactions.

v E-money: is also known as electronic cash which refers to money  or script which exchange only electronically. A good example of e-money is money transfer.

v Bill payment: it refers to e-banking application whereby customer directs the financial institutions to transfer funds to the account of another person or business.