Nigeria: No, First Bank Is Not Offering Loans to Nigerian Small Businesses Through This Unverified Facebook Account

24 July 2023
Africa Check (Johannesburg)
By Muktar Balogun

IN SHORT: A Facebook page impersonating First Bank promises loans to small businesses in Nigeria. But it's all a scam.

The Facebook page FIRST BANK of Nigeria claims to offer loans to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Nigeria.

One 6 April 2023 post has an image with the message: "Let's make your success story more elaborate. Get an SME loan for your business."

The page uses the name and logo of First Bank of Nigeria Limited, which was founded in 1894. It offers financial services solutions and is one of the oldest banks in West Africa.

This is one of the two posts found on the page claiming to belong to First Bank, with over 400 followers.

Similar posts can be found here and here.

But is this Facebook page and loan offers to be trusted? We checked.

Signs of a fake Facebook account

The official page of the bank is First Bank of Nigeria Limited. This page is verified by Meta.

The number of followers on the official account is significant, at 4.3 million, compared to the 492 followers of the suspicious account.

First Bank has several loan offers, including FirstCredit, Easy Access, FirstEdu, and Single-Digit Loan For Women-Owned Businesses.

The bank offers businesses various SME product options. Under this category, small to medium enterprises can apply for commercial mortgage, operational vehicle finance and several other loans.

The company also has a loan application form on its website. It requires interested parties to fill in their details and choose the type of loan they're applying for. There is no indication you can apply for a loan through an unaffiliated Facebook page.

The bank's official Twitter page urged the public to not be scammed through fake accounts. The image attached to the tweet reads: "If it's not verified, it's not us."

Africa Check has reported on several fake loan schemes on Facebook.

To help protect yourself and others against scams like this, see Africa Check's guide to Facebook scams and how to spot them.

Read the original story, with links and other resources.
Africa Check is a non-partisan organisation which promotes accuracy in public debate and in the media. Twitter @AfricaCheck and www.africacheck.org

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