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Shareholders Funds To Drive Sale Of Rescued Banks

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Sanusi Lamido, governor, CBN worried by the negative perception occasioned by the delay in disposing of the rescued banks, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is proposing that the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) will focus initially on purchasing qualifying non-performing loans (NPLs) along with the associated rights to underlying collaterals, when it becomes operational.

Consequently, the apex bank, which has embarked on reconciliatory moves of late to stir dwindling confidence and also carry major stakeholders along in its ongoing reform programme, would want AMCON to concentrate on margin loans given by banks badly hit by the capital market crash, as they are easier to value. Specifically, the development is expected to restore Negative Asset Value (NAV) – bank’s total assets minus total liabilities – through taking over of the bad loans by AMCON, so as to be able to report positive shareholders’ fund. Shareholders’ fund is capital invested in a business by its shareholders, including retained profits or part of a bank’s financial assets consisting of share capital and retained earnings. It is an alternative term for owners’ equity.

The implication is that investors, both local and foreign, will be encouraged to resume talks with CBN-appointed holding managers of the rescued banks which broke down due to fresh discoveries after the due diligence carried out by some of them on the embattled banks. Ultimately, these investors will be expected to contend with the minimum capitalisation, when the problem of shareholders’ funds is solved by the corporation.

In fact, in the wake of the capital market boom in 2008, the banks dipped into shareholders’ funds to purchase, under fictitious names and proxies, shares under the much abused margin loans. But banks, particularly the rescued ones, are not helping matters as they are still charging interest on some margin loans entered in their books as bad, and which AMCON is expected to purchase.

For instance, an acceptance of the letter of resignation from one of the distressed banks to an ex-staff says: “Kindly note that your public offer loan is running at 16.0 percent beginning from your resignation date.” In another instance, dividends that accrued to the shares of the same loan have been taken over by the bank through letters dated September, November and December 2009 from the registrars to the head office of the bank.

However, CBN is said to be disturbed by the delay in the disposal of the distressed banks through mergers and acquisitions, but observed that the only way to reverse the trend is through positive shareholders’ funds.

Interestingly, AMCON is also expected to distribute those assets to investment managers, who will have the option of taking a variety of portfolios through an investment strategy that will be defined by it. This could be through selling some of the shares and going into real estate. Besides, CBN sees it as a vehicle for distributing losses between the banks and the brokers, following the capital market loss of about 70 percent to the crisis.

Justifying CBN’s position, Razia Khan, global head of macro economic research, Standard Chattered Bank said: “In the case of any asset management company, one would expect it to buy assets that can be easily valued first – in this case margin loans – as there is a market for it. Even if higher than market prices are paid for the assets in order to recapitalise the institutions, this is standard practice with AMCs the world over.”

Johnson Chukwu, managing director and chief executive officer, Cowry Asset Management Limited, said: “What the CBN means is that AMCON will basically start with taking over the bad loans of the troubled banks and the collaterals which were used to secure the loans. This action is intended to make sure that their net asset value, which, for the troubled banks is all negative, will be reversed to positive. As you know, the NAV, which is the same thing as the shareholders’ funds is negative for the troubled banks because they had to take losses from their non-performing loans.

 ”When these loans are taken over by AMCON, the banks will write back the huge provisions they made for the loans into profit or extraordinary income and if the write backs are as high as their negative NAV, they will be able to report positive shareholders’ fund. For the banks to be attractive to new investors, be they local or foreign, they need to have positive shareholders’ funds.

“For instance, if an investor has to take over bank A today, he has to first inject over N200 billion to bring its shareholders’ fund to positive before injecting another N25 billion to meet the minimum capitalisation for banks. If, however, AMCON is able to reverse the negative shareholders’ fund, then the new investor will only have to contend with raising N25 billion.”

Akinbamidele Akintola, research analyst, Renaissance Group, was of the opinion that given the 10-year life span for AMCON, it will be in a position to manage the loans for recovery, post-capital injection, adding that “it would remain a part of CBN regulatory infrastructure going forward to reduce NPL levels in banks.” He however called for a clear and transparent valuation model for taking over the loans.

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Eazipay  Offers Zero-Interest Loans To  150,000 SMEs, Employees

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With a mission to ignite growth, encourage business continuity and help businesses and employees thrive, Eazipay is gearing up to propel the dreams of 150,000 SMEs and employees to new heights through her relief fund.
Gone are the days of financial constraints and stifled dreams. With Eazipay’s support, SMEs and employees alike can bid farewell to limitations and embrace a world of endless possibilities.
Whether it’s start up,  business expansion or personal development, Eazipay is here to make dreams come true.
The mind-blowing initiative, which  kicked off this month, would end in December, and will also offer a range of perks and benefits designed to put a smile on the faces of SMEs and employees alike.
From exclusive discounts to various advisory services and beyond, Eazipay is committed to spreading happiness and creating lasting impact in people’s lives and to the growth of businesses.
The technology company which offers products and services that range from payroll management to IT/Device management and assessments, “Eazipay isn’t just providing financial support but also unleashing a wave of growth and prosperity for SMEs and employees across the nation.
“Interested businesses and individuals can take part in this initiative directly from the Eazipay website: www.myeazipay.com”.

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SMEs Critical For Sustainable Dev – Commissioner

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The Commissioner of Finance, Lagos State, Abayomi Oluyomi, has described Small and medium Enterprises (SMEs) as a critical engine for sustainable development in any economy.
He said this recently at the 10th anniversary of the Alert Group Microfinance Bank and the opening of their new head office in Lagos.
According to the National Bureau of Statistics, SMEs accounted for about 50 per cent of Nigeria’s gross.
He commended the positive impact of the Alert MFB as it empowers SMEs in the State.
“Alert MFB in the past 10 years has been at the forefront of empowering SMEs in Lagos State, disbursing over N30bn in loans to over 30,000 individuals having small to medium businesses over that period, which is quite remarkable”, he said.
Speaking, the Group Managing Director of Alert Group, Dr Kazeem Olanrewaju, revealed that the financial institution commenced business in 2013 as a microfinance bank.
“We started this journey in 2013 and it has been expanding. Today, they have about 10 branches across Lagos. They have supported well over 30,000 clients and have disbursed over N30bn.
“The company has been profitable since the second year. Looking at the market and the available opportunity, the Alert MFB board decided to come together to establish a Microfinance Institute (MFI), which is the Auto Bucks Lenders”, Dr. Olanrewaju said.
The GMD further stated that the company was focused more on supporting businesses and small and medium enterprises.
“The loan to support business represents over 98 per cent. The consumer loans you will see are the ones given to entrepreneurs. So, the area of focus of Alert MFB and Auto Bucks Lenders is to support businesses across the country.
“With the establishment of Auto Bucks Lenders, we have the opportunity to also do business outside Lagos. So, presently, we have offices in Ogun State and Oyo State. We intend to go to every part of Nigeria to support what we are doing”, he declared.

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Retailers Explain Price Drop In  Cement Cost

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The cement market, in the last couple of weeks, has seen a significant turnaround with prices tumbling from between N10,000 and N15,000 per 50kg bag to between N7,000 and N8,000.
The sudden rise in the prices of cement and other major building materials in February this year upsets  the construction industry, especially in real estate, where many developers were forced to abandon building sites.
A recent market survey conducted by The Tide’s source in different locations across the country confirmed a price drop, ranging between N7,000 and N7,500 per bag, though BUA cement is selling for N7,500 to N7,800 per 50kg bag, depending on location.
Both entrepreneurs and major distributors who were interviewed,  explained that the price drop is due to low demand and government’s intervention.
At the peak of the price hike, the Federal Government called a meeting with major producers where it was agreed that a bag of cement should be between for N7,000 to N8,000, depending on location.
But the producers did not comply with this agreement immediately, followin which “Nigerians stopped demanding for cement; many project sites were abandoned as developers sat back and waited for the prices to come down.
“So, what has happened is an inter-play of demand and supply with price responding, which is Economics at work”, Collins Okpala, a cement dealer, told the source in Abuja.
In the Nyanya area of the Federal Capital Territory, a 50-kg bag of Dangote cement now sells for between N7,000 and N7,500, while BUA cement sells for between N8,500 and N9,500, down from between N11,000 and N12,000 respectively.
In Lagos, the product has seen significant price drop too. In Ojo area of the state, Sebastin Ovie, a dealer, told our reporter that what has happened is a crash from the January price, attributing the crash to low demand and stronger naira.
“The current price of the product is between N7,000 and N7,500 per 50kg bag, depending on the brand. This is a significant drop from the average of N12,000 which most dealers were selling in February and March”, he said.
A dealer in Agege area of the state who identified himself as Taofik Olateju, told the source that sales are picking up due to the drop in price.
He recalled that Nigerians at a point stopped buying due to the high price of the product at N15,000 per bag.
“I am sure most dealers ran at a loss then because we had mainly old stocks which we wanted to offload quickly”, he said, confirming that the product sells for between N7,500 and N8,000, depending on the brand and the demand for the brand.
Continuing, Olateju noted that “because the naira is now doing well against the dollar, it will be unreasonable for manufacturers to continue to sell the product at the old prices. I also believe that the federal government’s intervention and the threat to license more importers may have worked, leading to the reduction in price”.
In Enugu, the source reports that the product sells for between N7,200 and N7,500 depending on the brand and location.
“This is a city where the price of a 50kg bag went for as high as N12,000 and N13,000 in some cases in February and March”, Samuel Chikwendu said.
He added that the prices of other building materials, especially iron rods, have also dropped considerably which is why, he said, activities are picking up again at construction sites.
The story is slightly different in Owerri, the capital of Imo State, where Innocent Okonkwo told the source that low demand was also driving the price drop, adding that a 50kg bag was selling for N9,000 on the average in the state.
Sundry market observers are optimistic of further price reductions, but they remain cautious as manufacturers, wholesalers, and retailers continue to play critical roles in setting prices for end-users.
They lamented, however, that despite Nigeria’s status as one of the largest producers of cement in Africa, the price of the product continues to rise, particularly in the face of high inflation impacting the building materials market generally.
Okpala in Abuja highlighted the variations arising from direct sourcing from manufacturers versus procurement through dealers, with traders holding old stocks selling products at prices ranging from N8,500, N8,300 to N8,000 per bag.
Lucy Nwachukwu, another dealer in Abuja, said the significance of  procurement volume in determining cement costs, noting that stability in prices has been observed over the past month, with the product retailing for between N7,000 and N7,800 depending on the brand.
In Port Harcourt also, a customer, Daniel Etteobong Effiong, said the price goes between N7500 to N8500, depending on the brand and the location one is buying from.

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