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By Chinwendu Obienyi
Shortly after dissolving the board and management of Union, Keystone and Polaris banks, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Thursday, announced the appointment of new executives to oversee the affairs of the banks.
The apex bank, in a statement obtained from its website, announced the appointment of Yetunde Oni, Hassan Imam and Lawal Akintola as Chief Executive Officers of the Union Bank, Keystone Bank and Polaris Bank, respectively.
It also noted that Mannir Ringim, Chioma Mang and Chris Ofikulu will be Executive Directors at the respective banks. The appointments take immediate effect.
The dissolution came barely three weeks after the Special Investigator on the CBN and Related Entities, Jim Obazee, submitted its final report to President Bola Tinubu.
The acting Director, Corporate Communications, CBN, Mrs Sidi Hakama, in a statement, said the affected banks’ alleged infractions varied from regulatory non-compliance, corporate governance failure, disregarding of the conditions under which their licences were granted, and involvement in activities that posed a threat to financial stability, among others.
She added that the dissolution of the boards became necessary due to the non-compliance of the banks and their respective boards with the provisions of the Bank and Other Financial Institutions Act, 2020.
Obazee, in a report he submitted to President Bola Tinubu on 20 December, 2023, had said the former governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, used “ill-gotten wealth” to establish TTB and used it to acquire Union Bank and Keystone Bank through some persons serving as his proxies. Obazee’s investigations revealed questionable ownership and loans linked to Emefiele and also recommended that the banks be forfeited to the federal government.
But in its defence, Tropical General Investment Group (TGI) explained that the $500 million capital used to pay for the acquisition of Union Bank was transparent and unimpeachable; it also said due process was followed in the acquisition.
“The entire transaction was managed by highly reputed global financial institutions including Rothschild and Citibank.
“A $300 million loan was sourced from African Export-Import Bank (Afrexim) and the rest of the capital was sourced from the proceeds of TGI’s sales of its Chi Ltd business to Coca-Cola, all to finance the acquisition of Union Bank,” the group said.
