After a couple of meetings with the Nigerian Telecommunications Limited (NITEL), Zenith Bank was allowed to install VSAT dishes on the top of its buildings, using them to connect branches. This setback did not deter him from his digital banking ambitions though as he went ahead to use existing phone lines to network the Bank.
Initially, he set up a VSAT (very small aperture terminal) satellite, but the military government of the day pulled it down because they were under the impression it could be used to spy on the country. Jim Ovia to establish Cyberspace, a network and ICT-service company. In 1995, the need to integrate digital technologies in the business led Mr. When Zenith Bank first opened its doors in 1990, there were no automated teller machines (ATMs) in Nigeria, no debit or credit cards, and no digital networks. The management team drew up a strategic plan to open up branches within a short time in each state capital, with a mandate for each branch to be established and open for business within three to six months. Ovia’s example of discipline, commitment and getting results under great pressure. The new team learnt quickly, following Mr. As time passed, the tenant moved elsewhere, allowing Zenith Bank to utilise the entire space. Ovia as pioneer Managing Director/CEO, Zenith Bank commenced business in a duplex at Ajose Adeogun Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, sharing the facility with another tenant who occupied the other side of the building.
The licence for Zenith Bank to commence operation was issued on April 22, 1990.
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He put so much into delivering a high-quality application for a commercial banking license because of his strong view that whatever emanates from the company represents the company and the values of the founder. Leveraging on his experience over the years, he was able to write the application for a banking license, including a detailed feasibility study of the proposed Zenith Bank. In arriving at a decision, he was guided by his understanding of the core elements of successful branding, including simplicity, broad-based appeal, and uniqueness. Mr Ovia chose “Zenith” as the name of the Bank, a name he reckoned had not been used in the international and global market. Like many Nigerians, he was intrigued with this opportunity that private investors were presented to be licensed to operate banks, so he decided to make an application to acquire a banking license. Following the collapse of crude oil prices in the early 1980s, Nigeria implemented a Structural Adjustment Program (SAP) in 1986, seeking to revive the economy by extending opportunities to the private sector by commercialising or privatising previously regulated industries, including banking. His experiences at IMB, which were in the areas of financial and credit analysis, treasury management, developmental finance and trade finance, prepared him for the bigger things that lay ahead of him in the financial services industry. There, he rose meritoriously to the position of Senior Manager and from 1987 to 1990 led the Corporate Finance Department of Merchant Bank of Africa under the technical supervision of Bank of America. In the last quarter of 1980, immediately after his NYSC program, he joined International Merchant Bank (IMB), a subsidiary of First National Bank of Chicago as a Financial Analyst. During his senior year at the university, he got a night job as a computer operator at the Baton Rouge Bank and Trust, USA, where he had the opportunity of learning how the American Bank was using data processing technology to its advantage.Īfter receiving his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration from the Southern University of Louisiana in 1977 and an MBA from the University of Louisiana in Monroe in 1979, he returned to Nigeria to participate in the mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) program.
Jim Ovia’s journey into the world of banking began at the Oba Akran Way, Ikeja, Lagos branch of Barclays Bank DCO (now Union Bank) in 1973, where he worked for about two years as a banking clerk before moving to the United States of America for his undergraduate and postgraduate studies. Sponsorship of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF).Title Sponsorship of The National Women's Basketball League.