FirstBank of Nigeria has alerted its vendors and suppliers of an upcoming migration to a cloud-based procurement platform. The transition, set to begin on Saturday, October 26, 2024, is part of the bank’s strategy to improve operational efficiency. While the move will bring about long-term benefits, the bank has warned of possible temporary disruptions during the switch.
The migration is expected to last until Sunday, November 3, 2024, with the new cloud-based system going live on Monday, November 4. During this period, vendors may experience delays in submitting invoices and receiving payments. FirstBank has urged suppliers to submit all pending invoices by Friday, October 25, to minimize any disruption.
The current Electronic Business Suite (EBS) will cease operations after the migration, and suppliers will soon receive instructions on using the new portal. Though some activities will be suspended, FirstBank reassured stakeholders that measures have been put in place to ensure minimal downtime. Payments for invoices submitted before the cut-off date will be processed as usual.
It’s important to note that this transition will not affect FirstBank’s core banking services, which were previously upgraded. However, other Nigerian banks, like Zenith Bank and GTBank, faced customer frustrations during similar transitions. As FirstBank continues its digital transformation journey, adopting cloud-based technologies will streamline procurement and financial processes, maintaining its competitive edge in Nigeria’s banking industry. Vendors and suppliers are hopeful that First Bank will avoid the disruptions that have affected other institutions during similar upgrades..
