Wema Bank refunded ₦17.5 billion to customers in 2024 following a surge in service complaints, reflecting its intensified push to combine customer-centric innovation with compliance to Nigeria’s evolving consumer protection frameworks.
The refunds—up from ₦11.2 billion in 2023—came as the bank handled over 780,000 customer complaints, driven partly by its expanding digital footprint and revamped service infrastructure. This development was disclosed in the bank’s 2024 annual report, which highlighted the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) and robotic process automation (RPA) into its customer engagement channels.
Despite the sharp rise in service interactions, complaint resolution within set timelines improved to 88%, a development the bank credits to automation and a shift to cloud-based customer support systems. Wema Bank said dropped calls at its contact centre fell to 6.7% in 2024, a more than 100% improvement on the prior year, while chatbot acceptance among customers rose by 41%.
“Our drive toward seamless digital banking has not only helped scale our services but has improved accountability and transparency in how we resolve issues,” the bank said.
The surge in refunds—nearly ₦6.3 billion higher than the previous year—suggests the bank’s approach prioritises long-term trust over short-term cost containment. Notably, no unresolved complaints were escalated to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), a rare feat in a year marked by tighter regulatory oversight.
Wema’s innovation-led strategy aligns with its ambition to become Africa’s dominant digital platform for financial services. It continued to invest in AI-based service models, backend automation, and staff training, with customer experience tied closely to executive performance metrics.
The lender’s results underscore the challenge of digital scale: more customers, more complex queries—but also the opportunity to automate trust-building at scale.
