First Bank Ido-Ani has become the focus of renewed appeals from residents of Ido-Ani in Ose Local Government Area of Ondo State, who are urging the financial institution to reopen its branch seven years after it was closed following a deadly armed robbery attack. Community leaders say restoring banking services would revive economic activities, improve financial inclusion and preserve an important part of the town’s banking history.
The First Bank branch in Ido-Ani ceased operations after armed robbers attacked the facility in April 2019. During the incident, the assailants reportedly carted away an undisclosed amount of money from the bank’s Automated Teller Machine (ATM) and killed at least six people, including a police officer and a vice-principal of a secondary school.
Security operatives later arrested one of the robbery suspects through a joint operation involving the Nigeria Police Force and the military. Since the closure, residents have repeatedly called for the bank’s return, arguing that security conditions have improved and banking services remain essential to the area’s economic development.
Speaking on behalf of concerned residents and indigenes, community leader and former Chairman of the Irekari Local Council Development Area, Mr. Steve Otaloro, appealed to the management of First Bank of Nigeria to reconsider its decision.
In a statement issued on Monday, Otaloro described the closure as inconsistent with the legacy of the bank’s first indigenous Managing Director, Chief Samuel Oyewole Asabia, whose tenure saw the establishment of the Ido-Ani branch during the 1980s. According to him, while there is no public evidence that the branch was created solely because Ido-Ani was Asabia’s hometown, its establishment reflected the bank’s commitment to expanding banking services to rural communities.
“While there is no public evidence that the branch was established solely because it was Asabia’s hometown, its establishment during his tenure remains historically significant and symbolises the philosophy of taking banking services to the grassroots.”
Otaloro explained that unlike many rural branches that initially operated from rented facilities, First Bank invested significantly in Ido-Ani by constructing a dedicated banking hall and an official residence for the branch manager. He said the investment demonstrated the institution’s long-term commitment to the community. For decades, the First Bank Ido-Ani branch served residents of neighbouring communities, including Idogun, Imeri, Owani, Afo, Ikun and Oba.
The facility also provided banking services to institutions such as the Federal Government College, Ido-Ani, the Nigerian Navy Secondary School, Imeri, as well as farmers, traders, artisans, transport operators, cooperative societies, civil servants and other businesses across the area.
According to the community leader, the closure has forced residents and business owners to travel considerable distances to access banking services.
Many now rely on Point-of-Sale (PoS) operators for transactions that were previously handled by the bank, increasing costs and limiting access to formal financial services. He argued that restoring banking operations would stimulate commercial activities, strengthen financial inclusion and improve access to banking for rural communities.
Otaloro urged the current leadership of First Bank to review the decision taken by previous administrations, saying the institution has an opportunity to restore an important legacy.
“The present management may not have ordered the closure of the Ido-Ani branch, but history will remember whether it had the vision to restore it.” He added that reopening the branch would honour Chief Samuel Oyewole Asabia’s contributions to Nigerian banking while reaffirming the bank’s commitment to grassroots banking and financial inclusion.
“There is still time for First Bank to return to the historic town of Ido-Ani, where its first indigenous Managing Director, Chief Samuel Oyewole Asabia, began his remarkable journey and now rests. Reopening the branch would be a fitting tribute to the doyen of Nigerian banking and a practical demonstration that the bank remains committed to the ideals of rural banking and financial inclusion that he championed.”
