Economy
Heritage Bank Is Not In Distress—CBN
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has come out to defend Heritage Bank following a report that the financial institution was in distress.
The apex bank, in a press statement issued on Tuesday by its Acting Director of Corporate Communications, Mr Isaac Okorafor, disclosed that the bank “is not in distress” as being speculated and urged its depositors to “go about their transactions without fear.”
CBN said it is also not true that Heritage Bank was “unable to discharge its obligations to its depositors” and insists “no Nigerian Bank is in distress.”
“The CBN, as the industry regulator, has a duty to depositors, in particular, and the economy, in general, to ensure the soundness of all financial institutions.
“We therefore wish to assure all depositors of the safety of their deposits.
“The CBN also wishes to state that it will remain alive to its responsibility of ensuring banking system stability and soundness through constant monitoring and supervision of all licensed institutions.
“The Central Bank of Nigeria wishes to reiterate that the banking system remains resilient enough to weather the current economic storm,” Mr Okorafor said in the statement.
Sahara Reporters had claimed Heritage Bank was in distress and further alleged that the CBN was only covering things up for the bank.
Though Business Post had made efforts on Tuesday to hear from Heritage Bank from its PR agency, Power Light Nigeria, but as at press time, the agency was yet to respond to our enquiry about the issues raised in the story being peddled by the online media.
Below is the controversial report by Sahara Reporters:
Heritage Bank Plc is currently stuck in a debilitating liquidity situation; SaharaReporters has learned.
Our sources disclosed on Monday that the bank is unable to meet customers’ immediate withdrawal requests and has wiped out all foreign currency domiciliary accounts through physical theft of cash by the bank’s directors.
First Bank Plc, which handles Heritage Bank’s universal clearing activities, has threatened to blacklist the bank and stop further clearing transactions if its outstanding deficit of over N5billion is not cleared.
At the weekend, at a meeting held at a secret location between the Managing Director and some top management staff, it was resolved that the Managing Director and two Executive Directors should resign their appointment for their role in throwing the institution into distress.
Sources said the bank’s operations in the Northern part of the country region are sustained by one customer, Rano Oil Limited, which maintains a deposit with Heritage Bank because its Chairman is unaware of the severity of the situation in the bank has slipped into.
Among others, the Managing Director is alleged to have been involved in the laundering of about N12.8billion. Two insurance firms: IEI Insurance Plc, and the National Insurance Commission of Nigeria, are said to be connected to the matter.
SaharaReporters gathered that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was prepared to charge the Managing Director to court, but did not, following the intervention of Senate President Bukola Saraki, who is a part-owner of the bank. The EFCC, whose chairman is awaiting confirmation by the Senate, stepped back.
Customers with foreign currency deposits are facing severe difficulties because they no longer have access to those funds.
Because of the magnitude of the bank’s problems and the possibility of prosecution, the Managing Director is said to have taken ill.
Out of about 500 Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) of the bank in the Lagos metropolis, only 138 are currently dispensing cash, the bank lacking money to feed the others.
Bank sources said a sum of N140million is required to supply all the ATM locations, and Heritage struggles to provide N10million for these ATM locations, which is why its machines rarely dispense cash.
The bank’s situation is further worsened by boardroom intrigues, tribal politics and ownership tussle.
The Managing Director and one Executive Director are said to run the bank like sole proprietors. The Managing Director and another Executive Director, Mary Akpobomen, who has been promised the position of the Deputy Managing Director by December, are in the same camp. The Yoruba interest in the bank, with Board Chairman, Mr. Seyi Akinfenwa, also has Mr. Tayo Ayeni and two Executive Directors, Mr. Niyi Adeseun and Mr. Ola Olabimjo on another side. On yet another side are Mr. Godwin Emefiele, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), who is the main pusher of Delta State/Agbor interest. The battle axes are said to be two other Executive Directors, Mrs. Ada Eze and Mr. Jude.
The three-dimensional feuds have ensured that positions, postings or deployments are made on lines of group loyalty, with competence plainly ignored. The bank’s Treasurer, Mr. Abidemi Shonaiki, was eased out of the bank when the Managing Director was on leave.
Insiders revealed that the bank has been turned into a compost heap by its top management staff, who among other misdeeds, use customers’ naira deposits to finance the acquisition of private properties in Lagos, Abuja, and Port Harcourt. They are also said to award contracts at inflated costs to the Managing Director, relatives, and friends of executive directors; employ top management staff without clearance from the CBN; bribe CBN staff on banking inspection with dollars; and cover up the bank’s liquidity problems by buying cash from other banks without the required documents or due diligence.
The Heritage Bank management portfolio of misdeeds is also said to include paying N100million bribe to pension funds officials for patronage retention; illegal warehousing of N1.2billion that should be in the Treasury Savings Account; as well as illegal clearance of customers’ deposits via issuance and payments of questionable ‘PRs’ in hundreds of millions.
The CBN Governor has ensured that these misdemeanors are kept hidden due to political pressure by the owners of the bank, and because the CBN doesn’t want to give the appearance of further distress in the banking sector following the recent crisis at Skye Bank.
The bank’s ailments have also manifested in the practice of debiting customers’ accounts for transfers without crediting the beneficiaries for days, blaming it on network failure; arbitrary sacking of staff who insist on standards; sacking of staff who exposed the fraud involving the Nigeria Ports Authority through which N7billion was illegally warehoused and diverted in clear violation of TSA directives; and refusal to report fraudulent activities involving relatives and cronies of the Managing and Executive Directors.
Other symptoms of poor corporate governance include the transfer to Abuja, but not sanction, of an Executive Director and General Manager from Lagos for committing fraud; promoting Managing Director’s relatives without appraisal; fraudulent conversion of bank properties by the Managing Director and top management staff; and the procurement of N2billion worth of furniture items and N3billion Toyota cars without passing through tender procedure.
Also, the bank awarded all cleaning contracts to one Mrs. Akpobome, who used different names for contracts, which cover North, South, West, East and Abuja outlets of the bank. The Managing Director and other top management staff also award contracts to their wives and children without due diligence.
The bank, the sources added, employed school certificate holders as officers, assistant managers, deputy managers or managers, even without experience.
http://saharareporters.com/2016/11/14/distress-hits-heritage-bank-cbn-cover-mode
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Stanbic IBTC Nominees Limited has been commended for its critical role in the Nigerian capital market, especially for safely keeping non-pension assets.
For the past 30 years, the company has provided custody services in Nigeria, and to celebrate this milestone, it was honoured with a closing gong ceremony at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited.
The milestone reflects the institution’s longstanding contribution to investor confidence and the continued development of the nation’s capital market.
Welcoming the organisation to Customs Street, the chief executive of NGX, Mr Jude Chiemeka, commended its three decades of custody services, recognising the firm’s role in strengthening investor confidence and enhancing market safety.
He highlighted NGX’s continued investment in technology, which he said has enabled over 2.6 million active retail investors to trade on the platform.
“Technology continues to be at the heart of our strategy,” Mr Chiemeka said, noting that a vibrant and secure marketplace remains essential to investor participation.
In his remarks, the chief executive of Stanbic IBTC Bank, Mr Wole Adeniyi, thanked NGX for its continued partnership, saying, “We are thrilled to be here today, commemorating not just our journey, but also the remarkable progress made by the NGX.”
He noted that the collaboration between the two institutions has continued to drive innovation, product development and thought leadership across the industry.
“We are dedicated to raising standards within the industry as part of Standard Bank Group. Our focus remains driving the growth and development of Nigeria’s capital market. Indeed, Nigeria is our home, and we drive her growth,” he added.
The chief executive of Stanbic IBTC Nominees, Mr Babatunde Majiyagbe, reflected on the evolution of the business from the era of physical share certificates stored in fireproof vaults to today’s fully dematerialised market, where securities are held electronically.
“We started with holding custody of physical certificates, investing in vaults with fire and dust protection, so those certificates could be presented when needed,” Mr Majiyagbe recalled, noting that while the market has evolved significantly, the commitment to service excellence has remained unchanged.
“What has endeared a lot of investors to the market is that they are dealing with a reputable organisation like ours. We are high on good governance, and high on technology, making the process of investment in Nigeria easier,” he said.
Mr Majiyagbe added that Stanbic IBTC Nominees’ role goes beyond just attracting foreign portfolio investment (FPI) and capital.
“For us, it’s not just about FPI; but also about the value we have delivered over 30 years. Stanbic IBTC Nominees continue to be the eyes and ears of foreign and domestic investors in our market,” he stated.
Mr Majiyagbe added that the firm has also supported the development of market rules and safeguards, noting: “We have, over the years, advocated for growth, change, transformation and stability in our capability to provide services to domestic and foreign portfolio investors continuously.”
The deputy chief executive of Stanbic IBTC Bank and Chairman of Stanbic IBTC Nominees, Mrs Bunmi Dayo-Olagunju, said the next phase of growth will build on the institution’s legacy of trust.
“For 30 years, we’ve delivered growth, security, and client confidence. That’s why investors have stayed with us and why new business keeps coming.
“Our target for this new phase of growth is simple: build on that trust and ride the acceleration in Nigeria’s economic activity.
“With custody, settlement, capital raise, and advisory integrated on one platform, we’re not just a custodian. We’re an infrastructure. We look forward to building on that trust for generations to come, serving both local and international clients. Hopefully, we’ll have another 100 years of maintaining that trust with local and international markets,” Mrs Dayo-Olagunju said.
By Dipo Olowookere
The positive market breadth index recorded by the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited could not save it from further claws of the bears on Friday.
The major performance indicators, the All-Share Index (ASI) and the market capitalisation, depreciated by 0.03 per cent and 0.01 per cent, respectively.
The ASI was down by 78.58 points to 245,283.68 points from the previous day’s 245,362.26 points, and the market capitalisation receded by N14 billion to N158.326 trillion from Thursday’s N158.340 trillion.
Business Post reports that market participants traded 943.0 million equities valued at N46.7 billion in 55,480 deals compared with the 2.1 billion equities worth N230.8 billion transacted in 48,231 deals a day earlier.
This implied that the trading volume shrank by 55.10 per cent, the trading value reduced by 79.77 per cent, and the number of deals surged by 15.03 per cent.
An analysis of the sectoral performance showed that the consumer goods space crashed by 0.60 per cent and the energy index went down by 0.09 per cent.
However, the banking sector improved by 1.90 per cent, the insurance counter expanded by 0.75 per cent, and the industrial goods segment soared by 0.10 per cent.
There were 33 appreciating stocks and 29 depreciating stocks during the last trading session of the week and month of July, indicating bullish investor sentiment despite the poor outcome.
CAP lost 9.97 per cent to trade at N128.25, Veritas Kapital depreciated by 9.49 per cent to N1.43, Vitafoam Nigeria slipped by 7.70 per cent to N179.80, The Initiates dipped by 6.67 per cent to N28.00, and NAHCO crashed by 6.63 per cent to N155.00.
Conversely, Eterna gained 10.00 per cent to sell for N33.00, Consolidated Hallmark also grew by 10.00 per cent to N8.36, McNichols expanded by 9.52 per cent to N5.75, Honeywell Flour increased by 8.96 per cent to N18.25, and First Holdco chalked up 8.00 per cent to quote at N129.55.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange extended its bullish run on Friday, July 31, by 0.99 per cent.
This raised the NASD Security Index (NSI) by 43.54 points to 4,431.71 points from 4,388.17 points, and lifted the market capitalisation by N26.13 billion to N2.659 trillion from N2.633 trillion.
The growth came amid a significant decline in the activity level, as the volume of securities decreased by 73.0 per cent to 690,990 units from 2.6 million units, the value of securities slid by 15.0 per cent to N75.0 million from the preceding session’s N88.3 million, and the number of deals contracted by 31.6 per cent to 26 deals from the 38 deals recorded a day earlier.
The most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis remained Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc, with a turnover of 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, trailed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units sold for N6.5 billion, and Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc with 76.6 million units exchanged for N5.5 billion.
The most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis was also GNI Plc, with the sale of 3.4 billion units worth N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units transacted for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units traded for N415.7 million.
Investor sentiment was bullish yesterday after a positive market breadth index triggered by five price gainers and two price losers, led by 11 Plc, which gave up N14.99 to close at N225.01 per share versus the previous day’s N240.00 per share, and MRS Oil Plc, which shed N14.55 to settle at N132.00 per unit versus N146.55 per unit.
However, Nipco Plc gained N41.50 to sell at N456.50 per share compared with the preceding session’s N415.00 per share, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc appreciated by N12.93 to N147.93 per unit from N135.00 per unit, Nitrox Industrial Gases Plc improved by N1.00 to N20.00 per share from N19.00 per share, CSCS Plc soared by 54 Kobo to N102.00 per unit from N101.46 per unit, and Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc jumped by 1 Kobo to 50 Kobo per share from 49 Kobo per share.
