In an exclusive interview with DAILYFAMILY.NG, Mr. Akeem Durotoye, Head Domestic Operation services, Heritage Bank Limited, explains the processes involved in obtaining business fundings for SMEs and further explained Heritage bank’s take on funding speculative businesses.



Can you tell us more about SMEs?

SMEs (Small and Medium-sized Enterprises) as a federal government initiative, is to improve the entrepreneurial competition in states and to ensure that people are able to access funds to live their dreams in terms of business initiatives and in terms of what their passion is.

Is it that starters can’t access loans from your bank?

As with any other process, SMEs business funding comes with the required conditionalities. It is not true that starters can’t get loan but as a starter, you have to meet certain conditionalities attached to the SME for accessing the loan. If you are a starter and you are able to meet all the conditionalities, then definitely, you will have access to the loan.



What is your futuristic projection for speculative businesses?

See, speculative businesses are highly risky businesses we all know, the world over, not even peculiar to Nigeria or Lagos state as it is. But, speculative businesses that have a high probability of non-crystallizing in terms of the risk but has a high possibility in terms of the revenue potentials.


See, because whatever it is, be it speculative or the normal business, they have an element of risk and they have an element of uncertainty. So if the element of uncertainty is high than the element of risk, then speculative business is going to grow in the country because a lot of speculative businesses are on the rise in the country.

For instance, Sports betting in the past used to be an unknown business but now it’s increasing because the middle-income earners are now into sports betting and it is becoming real and a competitive force in Lagos state now.



So like I asked earlier, is it that Heritage bank will never fund Speculative businesses or are you looking at a time you will be able to fund it?

Of course. Just like I have explained, speculative business is on the increase and you know what, in life, somebody will bell the cat at some point before it will escalate and that is what we are saying here.

In the future, as events unfold we will see a lot of speculative businesses having access to funds and once they are able to have access to funds, we will see that a lot will happen in the speculative business and before you know it they will become the order of the day.
https://dailyfamily.ng/in-the-future-we-will-see-lots-of-speculative-businesses-having-access-to-funds-akeem-durotoye-heritage-bank/