FOLLOWING weekend change of battons in five of the leading banks in the country, the new helmsmen have promised to live up to the expectation of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the entire banking public.


The new Group Managing Director/Chief Executive of Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, Mrs. Funke Osibodu, described the CBN’s decision to interfere in the affairs of the banks, as necessary, while assuring all stakeholders, especially the bank’s customers, that the bank would not compromise their interests and expectations.


In an interactive session with members of the general management, zonal coordinators and business development managers across the country, over the weekend, in Lagos on assumption of duty as the bank’s helmsman, Mrs. Osibodu reiterated the rationale behind the intervention of the CBN in Union Bank, which she said was to safeguard its corporate reputation and rekindle public confidence in its brand.


She stated that the change was to create a strong enabling environment for growth of the bank whilst enhancing several of the transformations going on within the bank, adding that “as with all changes, there will be questions and fears by all stakeholders. You have my assurances that the change and the additional funding will positively enhance the fortunes of the bank.”


Also, the Managing Director and Chief Executive of Oceanic Bank International Plc, Mr. John Aboh, assured customers of the bank that with the injection of N100 billion by the CBN, the bank would address its liquidity gap.


He also added that this would help the bank to meet all its financial obligations, noting that the bank was now safe and sound.


The apex bank’s intervention was to stabilise the bank by easing the existing liquidity constraints, and embarking on aggressive loan recovery, as well as growing the business.


The injection of fresh funds followed the pattern in Europe and America . In the United Kingdom, at the peak of the global financial meltdown, the Northern Rock Bank received a liquidity support facility from the apex bank of England, following problems in the credit markets caused by the US subprime mortgage financial crisis.


Assuring staff of the bank, Aboh said the board of the bank was not dissolved, as the chairman and all non-executive directors still remained in office. He then reassured that there was no need for fear. “There is no need to panic,” he said.


In his own reaction, the new Group Managing Director/CEO of Afribank Plc, Mr. Nebolisa Arah, who assumed duty on Friday, stated that the CBN intervention was meant to strengthen the stability, spur the growth of the bank and ensure that Afribank continued to remain solvent.


In a statement made available to the Nigerian Tribune, on Sunday, and signed by Mr. Moshood Isamotu, Manager Corporate Affairs, he said the new group managing director solicited for the cooperation of all staff in the task of building a more virile institution, stressing that the focus of the new team in the bank would be to build on the positive initiatives of the past management of the bank with a view to taking it to greater heights and initiate steps that would see the bank growing competitively. “We would leverage on the resources within the bank and the collective will of all the staff to achieve the desired result.”


He noted that Arah also assured and sought the understanding of the banking public and stakeholders that there was no need to panic as the bank remained solvent with capacity to discharge its obligations to the public.