Fidelity Bank Wins Banking Leadership, Oil & Gas Financing Awards at 2026 BAFI

Fidelity Bank Plc has clinched double honours at the 2026 BusinessDay Banks and Other Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards.

The bank’s Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, was honoured with the Award for Excellence in Banking Leadership, while the bank emerged as 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.

BusinessDay Media Limited said the leadership award celebrates bank iexecutives who have driven institutional growth, enhanced shareholder value, championed innovation and financial inclusion, and contributed significantly to Nigeria’s financial services sector.

Reacting to the honour, Onyeali-Ikpe dedicated the award to the bank’s customers and staff.

“I am deeply honoured to receive the Award for Excellence in Banking Leadership. I sincerely thank BusinessDay Media Limited for this recognition and dedicate it to our valued customers, whose trust and support have strengthened and inspired me throughout my career.

The African philosophy of Ubuntu teaches us, ‘I am because we are.’ In that spirit, this honour also belongs to the board, management and staff of Fidelity Bank Plc, whose dedication and professionalism continue to drive our vision of a stronger, more innovative and customer-focused financial institution,” she said.

With over 30 years’ experience across retail, corporate and commercial banking, treasury and business development, Onyeali-Ikpe has led Fidelity Bank into a period of sustained growth and international expansion, including the acquisition of the former Union Bank UK, now FidBank UK Limited.

Fidelity Bank’s Best Bank in Oil and Gas Financing award reflects its strong support for Nigeria’s energy value chain. The bank’s interventions include financing the onshore crude oil export terminal at the Otakikpo Marginal Field in Rivers State, supporting the Pinnacle Oil and Gas Terminal in Lekki, and part-financing a 23,000 cubic metre LPG carrier for Temile Development Company Limited.

It was also a participant in the $3 billion SNEPCo Contractor Finance Facility providing naira and dollar funding to indigenous contractors on SNEPCo projects.

The financed projects are expected to boost local participation, improve petroleum products distribution and gas availability, and strengthen critical energy infrastructure.

The dual recognition reinforces Fidelity Bank’s growing stature in the financial services industry and its commitment to funding sectors vital to Nigeria’s economic development.