WHEN the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, late last, year announced the revocation of operating licences of some 224 microfinance banks (MFBs) in the country as part of its statutory functions of regulating the banking industry, one of the names that featured was the Eagle Flight Microfinance Bank. There was panic in the sector as there was stampede in the industry as customers fell on one another trying to recoup their deposits. But just one week after that announcement vied a Federal Government Gazette No. 363 of September 24, 2010 and titled: “Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act, 1991 (As amended) Revocation of Operating Licences B357-B360)” the regulatory body aimed at sanitising the microfinance sub-sector of the banking industry, it discovered that there was flaw in the said exercise.

CBN discovered that contrary to earlier press reports, one of the ‘affected’ institutions, Eagle Flight Microfinance Bank, said to have fallen under the hammer, was not included in the original copy of the Federal Government gazette.

Three months after that incidence, Eagle Flight MFB, a baby of the Word of Life Bible Church, Warri, Delta State, marked its fifth anniversary in a very grandiose manner, perhaps, to reassure its customers that they have no cause to despair.

Thus, December 27, 2010 will remain memorable in the hearts of the growing number of its customers as several of them went home with gifts including plasma television, dining sets, electric generators and chest refrigerators.

In a statement at the occasion, chairman of the bank, Pastor (Mrs.) Helen Oritsejafor, said the bank has a turnover of N4.5bn in the last two years and authorised share capital of over N1bn shares.

Enumerating further the bank’s modest achievements in the last five years, the chairman said: “we have 883 groups with a minimum number of, at least, 10 members from 150 market communities and training centres, and the cash value to such micro groups is over N500 million. We are presently managing and administering co-operative schemes for the communities in their areas of operations e.g. Delta State Micro Credit Scheme, Itsekiri Regional Development Council, the Egbema/Gbaramatu Council just to name a few.”

According to the trained banker, Eagle Flight MFB has a Bureau de Change as it is a sub-representative of the Western Union Money Transfer, adding “we have branch networking which means you can withdraw your money from any of our branches all over town and in any part of the country, thus providing diversified affordable financial services in a timely and competitive manner.”

Looking ahead, the bank chairman said it has already initiated an Easter Eagle Value Bonanza 2011 where lucky customers will celebrate this year’s Easter with either a Kia Rio car or a 28″ Plasma television or a deep freezer.

“The minimum balance required to be part of the raffle draw is N2m, N1m or N100,000 respectively per month for six months,” she explained.

Oritsejafor also explained that the bank initiative was the brainchild of her husband and the national president of the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor, who believes that the gospel of Jesus Christ must be ministered to the total man instead of just ministering to the spiritual aspects of human existence.

“It is borne out of the desire of Papa Ayo Oritsejafor not only to minister to the spiritual aspects of human existence but also to be able to attend to the physical and economic well being of souls which gives credence to one major reason why we are having an annual poverty alleviation programme.

“The Eagle Flight MFB, being the biggest and the best in Nigeria and Africa, is poised to take the microfinance banking industry to a higher level in Nigeria via customer friendly products and services which earned us several awards such as: The Best microfinance bank of the year 2009 by Delta Role Model Award; The Best MicroFinance Bank of the year 2010 by the Niger Delta Advancement Award and the CBN Award as the Best Micro Entrepreneur in Employment Generation on Micro 2010 among others,” she pointed out.

Speaking earlier at the 5th anniversary celebration, the acting Managing Director of the bank, Mr. Daniel Akpokhio, thanked the initiators and customers of the bank who collectively kept the dream of the bank alive.

According to him, the mission of the bank is to “professionally empower our community, encourage entrepreneurial development, and instill the culture of savings, bridge the gap between the poor and the rich using the best people and technology while delivering good returns to all stakeholders.”

He pledged speedy excellent service delivery, saying that turn around time is now five minutes. According to him, the bank with headquarters in Warri also specialises in advisory services and economic intelligence report to assist its customers and one of the strengths of the bank is that is has 100 per cent ownership of all its assets, while its information technology system ranks among the best in the banking industry in the country today.

With an array of products like Eagle Household, Eagle Oil Boom, Eagle VIP Silver, Gold, Diamond, Eagle Green Wealth Scheme, Eagle Plus Salary Advance, Eagle Better Life Club, Eagle Catch Them Young, Eagle Christmas Business Loans Accounts, the bank is further poised to cater for small scale businesses in the area of its operation.

One of the customers and frontline woman activist in the Niger Delta, Mrs. Deborah Laju Mabiaku, said the bank had given women in the region an opportunity to have access to loans and assisted the state owned interventionist organisation, the Delta State Oil Producing Area Development Commission, DESOPADEC in its discharge of the state sponsored micro credit scheme.

She admitted that she got a loan from the bank last year to reactivate her ailing business, stressing that when the rumour of the revocation of licence was rife in the country, customers of Eagle Flight were not moved.

“For the over one week before the clarification came, no customer made any attempt to withdraw their savings from the bank because they trust the brains behind the vision implicitly,”

Three Hyundai Accent cars, 10 tricycles and 100 grinding machines were given out to indigent people at the event.