Most banks talk about supporting small businesses. Fidelity Bank is currently running a masterclass on how to price a product without undercutting yourself into bankruptcy — and about 100 entrepreneurs showed up to the first one.
In April 2026, the bank launched a series of hands-on SME masterclasses out of its dedicated SME Hub in Gbagada, Lagos, covering the kind of practical business knowledge that rarely shows up in a loan brochure. The sessions aren’t theoretical. They’re built around the specific, immediate problems Nigerian small business owners are actually trying to solve.
The opening session, titled “Pricing That Works: How to Charge Right and Earn More,” ran on April 10 and pulled entrepreneurs from across industries for a deep dive into costing structures, value-based pricing, and the psychology behind how customers perceive price. For small business owners — many of whom set prices by instinct, competitor-watching, or quiet desperation — the content hit a practical nerve. Getting pricing wrong is one of the most common and quietly devastating mistakes an SME can make. Getting it right doesn’t just improve margins; it changes how a business is perceived entirely.
From there, the bank kept the momentum going. A two-day baking masterclass — “From Kitchen to Cashflow” — ran April 14 and 15, targeting food entrepreneurs with hands-on training designed to close the gap between making a good product and running a profitable business around it. It’s a distinction that kills more promising food businesses than bad recipes ever do.
Two more sessions round out the month. “Grow Online Sales on a Budget,” focused on low-cost digital strategies for visibility and customer acquisition, is followed by “Take Your Business Global: One-on-One Trade Advisory” on April 29 — a session covering export readiness, cross-border payments, target markets, and compliance requirements for Nigerian businesses eyeing international expansion.
Ugochi Osinigwe, Divisional Head of SME Banking at Fidelity, framed the initiative in straightforward terms: “At Fidelity Bank, we believe that when SMEs succeed, the economy grows. That is why we have curated masterclasses on pricing, product improvement, online sales, and global expansion to equip entrepreneurs with immediate, actionable tools.”
The series sits within the bank’s broader SME support infrastructure — the Hub itself offers advisory services, funding access, and nationwide programmes alongside the training events. Fidelity has been steadily building its SME credentials: the bank recently picked up the Best Retail and SME Bank Award from Independent Newspapers, and its trophy cabinet already includes recognition from Euromoney for Best Bank for SMEs, BusinessDay BAFI for Export Financing Bank of the Year, and Global Business Outlook for Most Innovative Mobile Banking App.
With over 10 million customers, 255 branches, and a UK subsidiary in FidBank UK, Fidelity has the scale to make these programmes reach beyond Lagos. Whether the masterclass model expands nationally will be worth watching — because if the Gbagada turnout is any signal, the appetite is clearly there.
