This week, we are pleased to announce the birth of a new partnership between the Daily Observer and Oceanic Bank Gambia Limited. Oceanic Bank are now the official sponsors of the Business and Finance column.

This new partnership is in every sense a partnership of giants, as both establishments have considerable clout in their respective areas of operation. The Daily Observer is the leading newspaper in the country. It has a wider circulation than any other paper.

Such is the paper's popularity and professionalism that it has become not only a household name but a byword for a newspaper.

Oceanic Bank, though a new name in The Gambia, is also a force to be reckoned with. It is one of the three largest banks in Nigeria.

Oceanic Bank was incorporated on March 26, 1990 as a private limited liability company with 100% equity ownership by Nigerian citizens, and licensed on April 10, 1990 to carry on commercial banking.

The bank commenced business on June 12, 1990 at the Waterfront Plaza, Plot 270, Ozumba Mbadiwe Avenue, Victoria Island, Lagos. It was listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange on June 25, 2004.

The bank has branches in other African countries, as well as in Europe and Asia. The Oceanic Bank team in The Gambia is led by Olumuyiwa Eleazar Ogunmilade. The bank currently has one branch in Kololi, but there are more in the pipeline.

We hope that this new partnership will grow from strength to strength. And to our new partners, Business and Finance says "Welcome".