By Amin Kef Sesay
Rokel Commercial Bank has on Saturday 27th March 2021 commenced Saturday banking operations at its Wellington, Clock Tower, Wilberforce Street and Juba branches. The branches will be open to the public between 9.30 a.m to 2.30 p.m every Saturday.
It is normal for the Corporate world in developing countries like Sierra Leone to go to sleep on weekends.
Apart from automated banking which is a pretty common feature in today’s banking industry many banks in Sierra Leone would rather go into comatose at the end of every week.
Forgoing two good days at the detriment of the economy and customer’s demand is insensitive, retrogressive and inconsistent with productivity.
Rokel Commercial Bank, which had consistently remained the fastest growing bank in Sierra Leone, had chosen to introduce Saturday Banking as a sure way to increase access to finance and increase customer’s satisfaction.
The Managing Director, Walton Gilpin has already reiterated his commitment to expand the Saturday Banking service to other parts of the country within the shortest possible time.
Several Rokel Commercial Bank customers interviewed including 38 year old Idrissa Kamara – a civil engineer said he was delighted over the news and that he can now go to the Bank on Saturdays to carry out his transactions. “Because of work schedule and pressure, I would always find it hard to leave my work site to go to the bank on weekdays. I am now happy that Rokel Commercial has heeded to our calls for Saturday banking,” he said.
The Saturday banking service will reduce work pressure on staff and Management as the added day can ensure many customers, who would normally have to wait till weekdays are served. This will also essentially reduce overcrowding at banking halls on weekdays.
In another development, the Bank is scaling up its digitalization program with a plethora of digital products that will in the fullness of time be ‘unleashed’ into the market to maximize growth, reliability and quality services. This is in fulfilment with the Managing Director’s earlier commitment to Sierra Leoneans that the bank has adopted a policy of full digitalization this year.
One of such products is the “2U” mobile software that will principally target customers in the diaspora. This product will come on the heels of the Orange Mobile Wallet service launched on the 18th of this month.
