Afrinvest West Africa Plc will on Wednesday, October 26, 2022 unveil its new identity to commemorate 27 years of operation.
The rebranding exercise will align with its global appeal and determination to serve wider markets in its new phase of operation.
The investment and research company will also unveil Optimus by Afrinvest and the 2022 Banking Sector Report during the event scheduled to hold in Lagos.
Speaking at a pre-launch press conference in Lagos, the Group Managing Director, Afrinvest West Africa Plc, Ike Chioke, said that since the publication of Afrinvest 2021 Nigerian Banking Sector report, ‘Resilience Amidst Endemic and Pandemic Constraints’, the bullish projections for the global economy in 2022 had been undermined by deteriorating fundamentals.
According to him, the increasingly gloomy projections have been the upshot of mounting downside risks, further inhibiting a world economy yet to fully shrug off the impact of the Coronavirus Disease.
Chioke described Optimus by AFRINVEST as a financial technology solution “that helps customers do the most by harmonising banking, wealth management and brokerage needs into one simple platform.”
Optimus, he said, “is changing the way people interact with money to achieve financial freedom.”
Chioke added, “Our risk management policy ensures that we prioritise asset class diversification and execute clients’ transactions in line with global best practices. We have built specifically for you a personalised digital wealth management neobank platform that provides bespoke and innovative financial services to help you reach the peak in your finances.”
The Afrinvest GMD listed some of the products to be offered as OptiFlex(naira/dollar), a high-yield investment account that allows one to save periodically to reach a certain target; OptiLock (naira/dollar), which allows one to set aside a lump sum of money for a fixed period (three months to two years) for an attractive interest.
Chioke said the funds saved on Optimus were invested through Afrinvest Asset Management Limited, an independent investment manager in Nigeria.
“The AAML, licensed by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as a portfolio manager, has over 20 years’ experience. Do everything with your money – save, invest and spend – on one simple and secure platform,” he said.
The company, in 2020, was planning to celebrate its 25th anniversary when COVID-19 hit the world, he noted.
On the rebranding, Chioke, said it was discovered that the company’s current logo did not align with its new direction; hence, the need for rebranding.
“The new identity will be unveiled to support Optimus, and signal that we are now moving into the digital age, and digital investment bank that can do essentially what other banks can do. It is all about using technology to provide seamless services to customers.
“The new Afrinvest logo and Optimus logo are going to the unveiled, and we have plans to go international. We have set up offshore positions that will allow us serve different parts of Africa to allow the business get the capacity it needs,” he stated.
Ayodeji Ebo dsecribed Optimus by Afrinvest as a one-stop shop for different products, adding that all the products of the subsidiaries would come under Optimus by Afrinvest where they could also be accessed.
“Our history and all the things we have done in the past 27 years become an added advantage to the customer. We see it as a new bank, as there will be both naira and dollar cards offered to customers, among other services. Because we are regulated, whatever we are going to do, will also fall within the ambit of regulation and will be standardised,” he added.