Access Bank Plc. has yet again proven its commitment to support the growth of the creative sector, by organizing a 2-day interactive forum to promote and provide adequate support for the Creative Industry Financing Initiative (CIFI) loans, developed by the CBN, in collaboration with the Banker’s committee. 

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) initiative, CIFI, focuses on four sectors in the Creative industry namely, movies, music, fashion and information technology.  The loans have a maximum interest rate of 9% per annum and a repayment period of up to 10 years and were set up to develop the sectors by boosting jobs, increasing capacity, encouraging entrepreneurship and revenue generation for the country. The first tranche of the CIFI facility has over N20bn set aside to be disbursed.  

The forum named the Access Bank Creative Loan forum took place on the 2nd & 3rd of July 2019 at the Access Bank headquarters in Lagos, Victoria Island. Each day of the forum held two interaction panel sessions. The first day had movies and music while the second day had IT and fashion sessions. All sessions were attended by industry leaders, stakeholders within the tech and other creative sectors along with experts in legal, finance and business consulting. Also, present were Access Bank representatives who were available to educate all on the CIFI loan facility, the eligibility criteria and the process for obtaining the loan. 

Speaking at the forum, Mrs Chizoma Okoli, Executive Director Business Banking at Access Bank Plc. reassured that the loan process will be very flexible and that Access Bank would help potential customers understand how the loans can help them attain their goals.

In attendance at the forum was Chineye Mba-Uzoukwu, former General Manager (Anglophone West Africa), Microsoft, who is currently the Managing Partner of Grand Central. Also, in attendance was Oamen John, CEO Faultless Finish, Chika Mordi, General Manager, Resource Development, and other notable leaders in the IT industry.

At the end of the session, guests and customers at the forum thanked the CBN for the initiative and commended Access Bank for its continued commitment to providing adequate financial support and capacity building to its customers, through its innovative products and services. 

To learn more about the Creative Sector Loans, visit https://www.accessbankplc.com/Personal-Banking/LOANS/Creative-Sector-Loan.aspx

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