Business
‘CBN Won’t Liquidate Any Bank’
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said that it has no intention of liquidating any of the 24 banks in the country.
This clarification was made last Friday against the backdrop of some misinformation in the form of text messages that were being circulated to the effect that it was about to liquidate three banks, namely: Oceanic Bank Plc, Intercontinental Bank Plc and Unity Bank Plc.
In a statement from CBN’s Head of Corporate Communications, Muhammed Ab-dullahi, the apex bank stated that no such decision had been taken.
“The attention of the Central Bank of Nigeria has been drawn to SMS text messages being circulated alleging that the CBN is about to liquidate the following three banks: Oceanic, Intercontinental and Unity banks and therefore advising customers to withdraw their money from these banks within 24 hours.
It added: The CBN wishes to state categorically that no such liquidation notice has been issued and there is therefore no plan to liquidate any of the three banks, and members of the public are advised to disregard these messages”.
The CBN advised all depositors and customers of the three banks to continue to conduct their business with the banks and disregard the text massages.
In the same fashion, the management of Oceanic Bank has flayed misleading text messages on the purported liquidation notice served on some banks by the CBN as the handiwork of mischief makers.
The bank’s management stressed that there is no iota of truth in the purported liquidation notice as no bank operating in the country is under any threat of liquidation by the CBN.
It also flayed media reports on planned picketing activities in certain banks, adding that Oceanic Bank maintains cordial relations with labour in keeping with its policy on relating with its workforce transparently and humanely.
The bank further refuted claims on the alleged retrenchment in the organisation, adding that its inclusion among banks to be picketed as reported in the newspapers was based on misinformation to labour leaders.
The Group Managing Director/Chief Executive of Oceanic Bank John Aboh said the bank’s management has reached out to labour and is optimistic that the picketing will not materialise.
“Oceanic Bank has the highest regard for its workforce and has always involved relevant labour unions in its activities. We are working closely with the Association of Senior Staff of Banks, Insurance and Financial Institutions (ASSBIFI) to set the record straight”.
According to Aboh, the bank will pursue a four-pronged recapitalisation plan to achieve the N25 billion minimum capitalisation required for national commercial banks.
These include: organic means through profit from operations, sale of assets to the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria, AMCON financial accommodation to bring the negative shareholders funds to zero, and injection of fresh capital from strategic investors.
The bank disclosed that it recently concluded the sale of some of its non-performing loans to AMCON and received bonds worth over N200 billion in exchange.
This has greatly improved the liquidity position of Oceanic Bank and boosted its liquidity ratios above levels stipulated by the CBN.
The bank also indicated that it has opted to go for a National Commercial Banking license in compliance with the revised banking model outlined by the CBN.
The Board of Directors of the Bank has resolved to apply for a National Commercial Banking licence under a stand-alone operating model, the bank stated.
The Board stated this in a statement released by its Corporate Communications Directorate to newsmen, recently, during the inauguration of 140 trainees for the Train 7 Project.
The trainees had undergone the Nigerian Content Human Capacity Development (NC-HCD) programme it organised in partnership with the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.
The Tide gathered that the training programme was an intensive three-month Advanced NC-HCD Programme for the US$5 billion NLNG Train 7 Project on Bonny Island, Rivers State.
The trainees, The Tide further learnt are graduates in different academic disciplines who have completed a 12-month Basic Training Programme in diverse oil-and-gas-industry-related skill sets and are now set for an on-the-job phase which includes active hands-on participation in operational areas such as Turn Around Maintenance (TAM), Commissioning, and Desktop Programmes.
The Corporate Communications Directorate of the NCDMB told The Tide that in November 2024, a set of 331 trainees under Batch A of the NLNG T7 HCD Training Programme began capacity development in facility management, engineering, Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Health Safety and Environment (HSE), Quality Assurance and Quality Control, as well as welding and fabrication.
According to the Board, additional 77 trainees under Batch B of the same Training Programme began capacity development in data analytics and supply chain management among several other fields relevant to the operations of the oil and gas industry.
While addressing the trainees and trainers who were drawn from the Oil and Gas Trainers Association of Nigeria (OGTAN), Management Personnel of the NCDMB and NLNG, the Executive Secretary of NCDMB, Engr Felix Omatsola Ogbe, said the Advanced NC-HCD training is more than a milestone.
“The NC-HCD training programme is an expression of the collective commitment of the Board and the NLNG to nurturing world-class Nigerian professionals who will shape the future of our oil and gas industry.
“The Board has remained steadfast in its conviction that Human Capital Development is a critical investment in the sustainability and competitiveness of Nigeria’s oil and gas value chain”, the NCDMB boss said.
He said the situation has resulted in widened knowledge gaps and operational challenges.
As a globally regulated sector, he said it was important that stakeholders put measures in place to attract the talents required to move the industry forward.
Keyamo, therefore, called on stakeholders in the industry to be deliberate in identifying, encouraging, nurturing and harvesting young talents to ensure a sustainable supply of manpower to the aviation sector.
Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection of the FAAN, Mrs Obiageli Orah, in a release made available to aviation correspondents, noted that the Minister deemed it necessary to attract the right quality of human resources required to move the sector forward.
“As a globally regulated sector, it is important that stakeholders put measures in place to continually attract the right quality and quantity of human resources required to move the industry forward.
“It is important to note that organising training programmes are avenues through which we can breed, nurture, and harvest such human resources.
“One of the critical challenges facing the industry is the ageing and retiring workforce, leading to widened knowledge gaps and operational issues.
“Training programmes, I believe, is among other things designed to make aviation appealing to the younger generation, while encouraging them to develop interest in taking up a career in the industry”, the statement stated.
Meanwhile, some aviation stakeholders have expressed concerns of countless young Nigerians who seek to make their mark in aviation, tourism, and the wider transport ecosystem but often face steep barriers to entry.
According to them, lack of access, limited mentorship, financial constraints, skill mismatches, and systemic gaps, among others, have posed some constraints to them.
The Tide gathered that by the appointment, Ogbe becomes Nigeria’s representative on the Board of the 18-member continental body, which has its headquarters at Brazzaville, Republic of the Congo.
Ogbe was picked for this role by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, who doubles as the Chairman of the NCDMB Governing Council.
The notice of the Executive Secretary’s appointment was conveyed in a congratulatory letter signed by the Director of Support Services, APPO, Mrs. Philomena Ikoko, on behalf of the Secretary-General of the organisation, Dr. Omar Farouk Ibrahim.
She applauded the NCDMB boss on the confidence reposed in him by the Minister, expressing her belief that he would make immense contributions to the development of the African oil and gas industry.
Mrs Ikoko stated that Ogbe was joining the Executive Board of APPO at a challenging time for the oil and gas industry, especially in Africa.
“Your appointment is a major call to duty for Nigeria and the continent. The secretariat will give you the support you will need to make a success of your assignment”, she said.
According to a statement by the Directorate of Corporate Communications and Zonal Coordination, the NCDMB played key roles in catalysing the operations of APPO and the development of local content in Africa.
The statement added that the board was providing institutional support and mentorship to several oil producing countries in their formulation of local content policies.
“The NCDMB initiated the African Local Content Roundtable (ALCR) and hosted the inaugural edition in Yenagoa, Bayelsa state, in June 2021, and the event was attended by key officials of APPO and other oil industry players.
“The idea for the Africa Energy Bank (AEB) was mooted by NCDMB’s officials at the event, as one of the strategies that would accelerate the growth of the African oil and gas industry and deepen local content.
“The Board also collaborated with APPO to host subsequent editions of the African Local Content Roundtable (ALCR), including the 2023 edition held at Abuja.
“The Africa Energy Bank, which APPO is setting up at Abuja, is aimed at pooling financial resources needed to fund big-ticket oil and gas projects across the continent, and bridge funding challenges currently impeding the development of the sector”, the NCDMB’S said.
Meanwhile, the APPO Secretary-General has said the Africa Energy Bank seeks to fund oil and gas projects across economies in Africa and help to plug critical financing gaps that exist through the continent’s over reliance on financiers from the West.
He added that each APPO member country is expected to raise $83 million with an objective of raising $5 billion capital for the establishment of the Bank.
The Tide learnt that recently Nigeria, Angola and Ghana have contributed their share capital for the African Energy Bank, which represents 44 percent of the trio’s contributions to the minimum capital that is required from oil producing countries in the continent.
It would be recalled that at the Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunity Fair (NOGOF) held recently, the NCDMB’s Scribe confirmed that the agency was part of key institutions that pooled resources for the formation of the Africa Energy Bank.
Ogbe announced that the Bank will open for business before the end of the 2nd quarter of this year, 2025, expressing hope that it will create more funding availability for local oil and gas projects and companies.
Similarly, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, had stated at the Offshore Technology Conference that Afrexim Bank has already raised $19billion for the take-off of the Africa Energy Bank.
According to him, $14 billion out of the funds represents the bank’s financial exposure on African oil and gas projects, with the additional $5 billion as take-off capital.