Diamond Bank Plc began as a private limited liability company on March 21, 1991 (the company was incorporated on December 20, 1990). Ten years later, in February 2001, it became a universal bank. In January 2005, following a highly successful Private Placement share offer which substantially raised the Bank's equity base, Diamond Bank became a public limited company.
Since the Bank was incorporated in December 1990, Diamond Bank has challenged the market environment by ...read more
introducing new products, innovative technology and setting new benchmarks through international standards.
Today, Diamond Bank is best placed to respond to changing lifestyles and is leading the digital transformation in response to these societal shifts. For example, Diamond Mobile is Africa’s leading banking app and the first with touch ID.
Delivering an enhanced customer experience is fundamental to the Diamond Bank proposition. We aim to support our customers via our tailored services, such as Diamond Woman, so that they can manage their lives seamlessly whether on-the-go or in branch – in other words, we want to go ‘Beyond Banking’.
Overall, our people remain the key differentiating factor in providing this unique customer experience across all markets where we operate and we are fully committed to consistently attracting only the best people to maintain our competitive edge.
Diamond Bank has a retail-led strategy, meaning it is well placed to benefit from Nigeria’s attractive fundamental macro-economic trends, particularly in the retail market.
The Bank also has a strong Corporate Banking offering that is helping to fuel growth across Nigeria through supporting businesses, redefining the country’s 21st century economy.
The Bank serves over 150,000 businesses of varying size across diverse sectors including Corporate clients as well as MSME (Micro Small and Medium-Scale Enterprises), for which it provides value-adding banking solutions.
With a primary listing on the Nigerian Stock Exchange and GDRs on the London Stock Exchange, Diamond Bank’s footprint extends beyond Nigeria, with a strong presence in the Republic of Benin and branches in Senegal, Togo and Ivory Coast – making it the first Nigerian bank to operate in Francophone West Africa. The Bank launched its first non-African subsidiary – Diamond Bank, UK –in 2013. As of January 2016, the Bank operated 271 branches across Nigeria and 317 across the Group.
Diamond Bank has frequently been the partner of choice for leading international organisations such as the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the UK’s Department for International Development (DfID), in order to deliver programmes targeting MSMEs and to promote financial inclusion.
The Carlyle Group, the global alternative asset manager, became a significant shareholder in November 2014 following its $147m investment in the Bank. This was a major milestone for Diamond Bank and a sign of confidence in the Bank’s strategy and market opportunity.
