Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers assets under management scales over N1.4tn

Sogunle

Chuks Udo Okonta

Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers Limited has continued to lead other Pension Fund Administrators, with its assets under management put at over N1.4 trillion, controlling over 31 per cent of the industry’s N4.5 trillion contributed fund.

Its Chief Executive Officer, Dr Demola Sogunle, said the firm has over one million retirement savings account (RSA) holders and has paid about N1.8 billion to almost 33,000 retirees monthly, adding that over N190 billion has been paid to retirees seamlessly since the PFA commenced operations in 2006.

He described as erroneous the impression often bandied in the public space that pension funds are left to PFAs, employers, individuals or operators to handle as they wish. Instead, he emphasized that pension fund assets are held by Pension Fund Custodians (PFCs) who execute benefit payments and investment instructions from the PFAs and are duly licensed by the National Pension Commission (PenCom).

“The PFAs manage and administer the funds, while the PFCs have custody of the pension fund. There are sufficient legal and institutional bulwarks to protect pension funds,” he stated, adding that funds are directly credited to the RSA of beneficiaries who enjoy unhindered access to any information relating to their pension contributions.

Executive Director, Investment Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers Limited, Eric Fajemisin, said the stakeholders’ forum was specifically designed to appraise recent trends and developments in the industry as part of a multi-pronged enlightenment campaign to deepen pension practice in Nigeria and to have more people enlist in the Contributory Pension Scheme. The company, he said, would always spearhead the quest for global best practice in the industry.

“Our aim is to continue to set higher standards of service delivery and ensure that our retirement savings account holders have peace of mind and derive maximum value from their investment. We believe that the support, experience and capabilities of the Standard Bank Group, to which Stanbic IBTC belongs, have been instrumental in enhancing our expertise, resource base and general service delivery. This initiative is part of a long-term commitment that defines Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers Limited’s value proposition to its customers and to the industry in general,” he said.

Fajemisin said innovations introduced by the PFA to enable clients experience excellent and convenient service delivery include the Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers mobile office; the first 24-hour multilingual call centre manned by personnel who speak the three major Nigerian languages - Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa; as well as Pidgin English; a footprint of over 200 branches of Stanbic IBTC Bank where RSA clients can access pension service; Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers’ regional offices; as well as selected branches of Zenith Bank PLC. Other access points include Stanbic IBTC Bank ATMs, online service for RSA holders, email, SMS and the Pension Notes, which accompany hardcopy RSA statements sent to customers quarterly.

Stanbic IBTC Pension Managers is a subsidiary of Stanbic IBTC Holdings Plc, a member of Standard Bank Group, a full service financial services group with a clear focus on three main business pillars - Corporate and Investment Banking, Personal and Business Banking and Wealth Management. Standard Bank Group is the largest African bank by assets and earnings.