If information reaching us is anything to believe, then, these are not the best of times for Mr. Phillip Ikeazor, the managing director/chief executive officer of Keystone Bank Limited over an alleged N4.2 billion illegal transaction as some aggrieved shareholders of the bank have expressed dissatisfaction with the poor performance of the bank’s chief and are therefore calling for his resignation.
We learnt, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has raised a team to interrogate the managing director/chief executive officer of alongside two other directors of the bank.
The two other directors under investigation by the agency, a source at the anti-graft agency said, are the executive director, corporate bank and treasury, Mr. Hafiz Bakare and executive director, North directorate, Dr. Shehu Muhammad.
According to the source, the call for the investigation came on the heels of the House of Representatives Public Accounts Committee (PAC) submission urging the anti-graft agency to beam its searchlight on the lender over its illegal movement of N4.2 billion from the Industrial Trust Fund’s account domiciled with the bank.
The committee said circumstances that led to the transfer of the fund without due permission from ITF should be investigated to ascertain the rationale behind such action.
Citing the auditor-general’s report, deputy chairman of the committee, Rep Ibrahim Baba (APC, Bauchi), who presided over the panel’s session on the matter said Keystone Bank moved money thrice from ITF’s account domiciled in the bank in November 2010.
He said on discovering the irregular transaction during one of its audit visits, the auditor-general’s team raised a query on the matter, saying an interest of N23.5 million was supposed to be paid by the bank.
But ITF’s director general, Joseph Ari, in his response said the transaction was carried out without the agency’s authorization and that the bank had explained that it was done in error.
He read a letter from Keystone Bank in which the bank said it had reversed the transaction but that no interest was paid to ITF.
He said as part of efforts to get the transaction rectified and the accrued interest paid, ITF reported the matter to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and that the apex bank advised an amicable settlement.
He said, however, that despite meeting with the officials of the bank on the matter, no solution could be found. Thus, the committee called on the EFCC to come into the matter with a view to investigating the transaction.
Meanwhile, one of the shareholders who spoke to our correspondent said that until the appointment of Ikeazor, the bank was doing well.
“Phillip Ikeazor does not have the ability to drive the bank. Since he assumed office in 2013, the bank has been struggling for survival; the fortune of the bank has continued to dwindle.”
“Recalled earlier last year, Mr. Ikeazor disclosed plans to sell the bank’s subsidiaries in three West African nations of Liberia, Sierra Leone and Uganda due to insufficient funds to operate an international license or recapitalize them.” Why won’t it get to that point when he cannot present the bank viable for business?”
“This is an institution that buyers were jostling for as at 2012 but today, reverse is the case.
“He should honourably resign his position for a more competent hand,” the source noted.
Our findings on some of the bank branches showed that they were struggling from low patronage and it has closed down some of them in Lagos. The bank had shut down its Oko-Oba Branch and Ojodu Branch in Lagos.
Efforts to speak with Mrs. Omobolanle Osotule, Head of brands and corporate communications of the bank proved futile as her mobile line was not reachable as at press time.
Keystone Bank is one of the three commercial banks that were acquired by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) through a ‘bridging’ process. The bank was established from the carcass of the defunct Bank PHB in August 2011.

Na WA o