THE IMPACT OF NEW PRODUCTS ON THE PROFIT PERFORMANCE OF COMMERCIAL BANKS IN NIGERIA (A CASE STUDY OF FIRST BANK PLC SUBMITTED). A RESEARCH PROJECT MATERIAL ON BANKING AND FINANCE 

ABSTRACT

This study is set out to investigate the response of the Nigerian Commercial Banks to the need for innovation (through the introduction of new products service) for the enhanced improvement in their profit position, giving the ever-changing financial and monetary policies, the creation and establishment of new financial institutions which makes competition inevitable and the deregulation of the banking environment.

These alternatives of polices and conditions are intended to introduce a measure of progress and sanity in the banking industry and the economy in general through banks active and prudent management of the funds mobilized from depositors to avoid distresses and eventual liquidation of banks as witnessed in the early 1950’s and most recently the liquidation of 26 commercial and merchant banks as announced in the last federal budget in 2001.

To carryout this research work, the researcher collected data on the type of product offered by the selected bank (i.e. First Bank Plc), their annual report for five years and oral interview was conducted through the management and staff directly concerned with the products implementation.  The data collected was analyzed using some basic statistical instrument such as chi-square and appear man rank order correlation co-efficient.

The result of the analysis point to the fact that there is an existent of positive relationship between products introduced and profit performance of commercial banks in Nigeria.

This finding have the benefit of enhancement of commercial banks positive response to introduction of new products or remodeling of the existing ones, which will help to entrench healthy competition and good banking practices for effective growth and progress of the country.

Therefore, it is the view of the research that the journey towards a product (service) making an impact on the profit performance of commercial banks in Nigeria does not and at the introduction of the product but includes the effective and efficient management of the human and material resource available to the banks and maximum implementation of the various identified instruments of the product implementation.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The commercial banks of study, which in this research work is limited to First Bank Plc, provides their numerous customer across the country with a full, range of commercial banking products (services) (First Bank, 1997), including but not limited to current, saving and deposit accounts, loan and overdraft, provision of international banking services, export credit and financial advisory services, automated teller machine, smart card, computer and western union money transfer system.  All these products and the favourable economic there is a decline in sales of these products and subsequent decline in their profit performance (Anibueze 1998).

As a result the bank introduced new products such as automated teller machine, smart card, computers, and western union money transfer, which are all aimed at improving the profit performance of these banks (Nwankwo 1990).

THE IMPACT OF NEW PRODUCTS ON THE PROFIT PERFORMANCE OF COMMERCIAL BANKS IN NIGERIA (A CASE STUDY OF FIRST BANK PLC SUBMITTED). A RESEARCH PROJECT MATERIAL ON BANKING AND FINANCE