Mobolaji Sunmoni, Team Lead, Upstream; Abimbola Ogunyemi, Team Lead, Downstream 1; Tomilola Onasanya, Team Lead, Downstream 2 (all of Fidelity Bank Plc); Frank Aigbogun, Publisher, BusinessDay Media Limited; Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank Plc; Patrick Akinwuntan, former Managing Director, Ecobank Nigeria; and Amanda Ezeani, Relationship Manager - Energy Division, Fidelity Bank Plc; at the 2026 BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards which held in Lagos where Onyeali-Ikpe received the Award for Excellence in Banking Leadership and Fidelity Bank was named Best Bank in Oil and Gas Financing
Susan Abayomi
Fidelity Bank Plc has received two awards at the 2026 BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards, recognising its leadership and contributions to financing Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
The bank’s Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Dr Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, received the Award for Excellence in Banking Leadership, while the financial institution was named Best Bank in Oil and Gas Financing.
The awards were presented at the 14th edition of the BAFI Awards, held at the Civic Centre, Victoria Island, Lagos.
According to BusinessDay Media Limited, the banking leadership award recognises executives who have demonstrated institutional growth, enhanced shareholder value, encouraged innovation and financial inclusion, and contributed to the development of Nigeria’s financial services industry.
Reacting to the recognition, Onyeali-Ikpe expressed appreciation to the organisers and dedicated the award to the bank’s customers, board, management and employees.
She said the honour reflected the confidence and support of the bank’s customers, as well as the dedication and professionalism of its workforce.
Citing the African philosophy of Ubuntu, which emphasises shared humanity and collective achievement, she noted that the recognition represented the collective efforts of everyone contributing to the bank’s growth and commitment to customer-focused financial services.
Onyeali-Ikpe has more than three decades of experience in the banking industry, spanning retail, corporate and commercial banking, treasury and business development.
Under her leadership, Fidelity Bank has recorded business growth and expanded its international presence, including the acquisition of the former Union Bank UK, now operating as FidBank UK Limited.
The bank’s second award, Best Bank in Oil and Gas Financing, recognised its financial support for projects across Nigeria’s energy value chain.
Among the projects supported by the bank is the development of an onshore crude oil export terminal at the Otakikpo Marginal Field in Rivers State. It also provided financing support for the Pinnacle Oil and Gas Terminal in Lekki, Lagos, and part-financed a 23,000-cubic-metre liquefied petroleum gas carrier for Temile Development Company Limited.
Additionally, Fidelity Bank participated in the $3 billion SNEPCo Contractor Finance Facility, which provides financing in naira and US dollars to indigenous contractors executing projects for Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company.
These investments are expected to support local participation in the energy sector, improve petroleum product distribution, increase gas availability and strengthen critical energy infrastructure.
The double recognition highlights Fidelity Bank’s activities in Nigeria’s financial services sector and its financing role in industries considered important to the country’s economic development.
