₦airaland Forum

… as Tier II banks record N559bn retained deficits

A group of Tier II banks led by Wema Bank Plc, Union Bank Plc and others have reported negative retained earnings of N559 billion for the year ended 2016, to further diminish shareholders’ Return on Investment (ROI), this newspaper can report.

Investigation revealed that these Tier-II banks reported N394.65 billion in retained deficits in 2015 despite announcing significant increase in profitability.

The enormous macro economic challenges facing banks in the country have exposed these banks to high volatility in share prices over uncertainties.

Retained earnings refer to the percentage of net earnings not paid out as dividends, but retained by the company to be reinvested in its core business, or to pay debt. It is recorded under shareholders’ equity on the balance sheet.

With a negative balance in retained earnings, companies also typically can’t make dividend payments to shareholders or owners. This means shareholders should not expect return on their investment.

Specifically, Union Bank of Nigeria in 2016 reported N244.18 billion from N242.06 billion retained earnings in 2015.

For the same year, Wema Bank retained deficit hits N38.45 billion in 2016, an increase of 8.9 per cent over N35.3billion recorded in 2015.

READ MORE HERE: http://witnessngr.com/dividend-retained-earnings-crisis-hits-wema-union-bank/

Aiteo Chief Executive Officer, Benedict Peters, is the latest Nigerian oil mogul to be named in the case surrounding the bribery allegations against former Nigerian Oil Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke.

Three London properties linked to the alleged bribery of Mrs. Alison-Madueke have been frozen under the UK Proceeds of Crime Act, at least one of which is owned by Mr. Peters.

The order, issued in September 2016 and obtained by Africa Confidential, forbids defendants Benedict Peters, Mrs. Alison-Madueke, Atlantic Energy’s Kola Aluko and Jide Omokore, Christopher Aire (a jeweller for Mrs. Alison-Madueke) and Donald Amamgbo (her cousin) from disposing of or dealing with the properties.

Messrs Alison-Madueke, Aluko and Omokore were named in the U.S. Department of Justice’s (DoJ) asset forfeiture, which stated that the same London properties totaling more than £10m were bought for the oil minister in order to secure lucrative Strategic Alliance Agreements (SAAs), which saw prized Nigerian oil assets passed to the minister’s cronies for pittance.

Mr. Peters’ company Aiteo has been linked to the 2015 INEC bribery scheme that saw Mrs. Alison-Madueke’s son, Ugonna Madueke, distribute $115million to INEC officials via Fidelity Bank in 2015.

But the inclusion of Mr. Peters as a defendant in the London case, which relates to an attempt to influence the former Minister’s contracting decisions, suggests that international investigations could be more wide ranging than was previously known.

READ MORE HERE: http://witnessngr.com/aiteo-boss-benedict-peters-in-fresh-trouble-linked-to-diezanis-loot/

• Call for probe

•You can’t probe us, show us your evidence of payment -VC

By: Felix Onajite

Students of the National Open University of Nigeria, NOUN, are currently kicking over their inability to retrieve monies they left in the school portal’s wallet for which the new school leadership claimed were unable to be retrieved, NIGERIAN WITNESS reports. To this end, they have called on the National Assembly, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and other anti-corruption agencies to initiate probe into the activities that would have robbed them of their monies. The monies, when put together they claimed runs into hundreds of millions.

However, in a reaction to the students’ claims, Professor Abdalla Uba Adamu, the new vice-chancellor who introduced the changes that led to the alleged disappearance of the monies retorted that neither Nigerian Witness nor the “so-called students have the right to audit the university’s account in order to establish the amount of money accruable as a result of money in students’ wallets.”

The students in their petition to Nigerian Witness claimed that before now, the National Open University of Nigeria outsourced its website management to an IT company which managed all the activities of the school and the student information until the new vice-chancellor, Professor Abdalla Uba Adamu came in and faulted the process. The VCs argument was that the school spent a large junk of it monies to manage the web when according to him, the school has enough manpower to manage it in-house.

This led to the suspension of the contract and subsequently sparked off series of problems the students are currently facing.
“NOUN has under the current VC launched more than three different websites apart from the old www.noun.edu.ng. It started with www.nou.org, it moved to www.noun.net and then www.nou.edu.net. Never has any of them lasted more than a month before it was pulled down,” the students revealed.
Nigerian Witness gathered that when the students were finally able to access information on the portal, they saw all their details intact except monies they lodged into their wallets with the school.

The wallet is virtual account on NOUN’s portal where students lodge their monies in for future payment of fees, registration of courses, and registration of exams.
“Students pay in monies into their wallets more than they need to use in a semester for safety. Some rich students pre-fund their wallets as much as N100,000 or more. The monies are the ones the new management and their ICT collaborators have refused to reflect. The school authorities are claiming they could not retrieve the wallet details after they have retrieved the other students information. This we believe call for proper investigation.”
Some of the students interviewed claimed they had balances ranging from N45,000 to N25,000 left in their wallets. Others as well had as little as N1,000 or N5,000.

READ MORE HERE: http://witnessngr.com/noun-students-battle-vice-chancellor-over-missing-millions/

Keystone Bank Limited has denied concealing funds meant to be transferred into the Federal Government’s Treasury Single Account.

The Federal High Court in Lagos had on Thursday ordered seven commercial banks to temporarily remit a total of $793.2m allegedly hidden by them in contravention of the Federal Government’s TSA policy.

But Keystone Bank, in a statement on Friday said, “In response to the news making the rounds that the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos had made an order directing Keystone Bank Limited to remit the sum of $17m allegedly illegally kept in its custody to the TSA, we wish to state that Keystone Bank has never illegally hidden any amount of money belonging to the Federal Government or any of its agencies.

“Details of all Federal Government funds in custody of Keystone Bank had always been fully disclosed to all relevant Federal Government agencies and at no time did Keystone Bank collude or ‎conspire with any official of the Federal Government to disobey the Federal Government directives on the TSA.

The lender informed its stakeholders that it would not conduct itself in breach of the laws or policies of the government, including the TSA policy.

“We are taking appropriate steps to respond to the issues raised in the Court Order. The bank added.

FOR MORE: http://witnessngr.com/tsa-no-hidden-funds-in-keystone-bank-management/

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A Limited Liability company, Bodex Telecom Nigeria Limited, and its managing Director, Olabode Agboola, have slammed N20 million suit on First City Monument Bank Plc (FCMB), and three others, over alleged threat and deploying stringent and forceful measure to recover ILLEGAL debt from them.

The applicants in the suit marked FHC/L/CS/481/17, joined as co -defendants are, a debt recovery agency, Bijoux International Services, Inspector-General of Police (IGP) and Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

Following alleged threat and use of stringent and forceful measure to recover the alleged debt, the applicants are seeking an order of the court compelling FCMB and its debt recovery agent, Bijoux International Services, to pay them the sum of N20 million as damages for continuous harassment and the threat of deployment of stringent measures against them.

The applicants are also seeking an order of the court restraining the respondents from deploying stringent and forceful measures in recovering from them the debt they never owed.

READ MORE HERE: http://theicon.ng/2017/07/01/customer-battles-fcmb-illegal-deductions/

Wema Bank and Diamond Bank have been named as companies likely to exit the banking index of the Nigerian Stock Exchange as the bourse commences the expected review of its NSE 30, and the six sectoral indices.

The other six sectoral indices are NSE Consumer Goods, NSE Banking, NSE Insurance, NSE Industrial, NSE Oil & Gas and the NSE Lotus Islamic Indices.

These indices are reviewed bi-annually (June and December) except for NSE Pension index that is reviewed once in the year (December).

With the review, the entry/re-entry as well as exit of some major companies is expected on July 1st, 2017, the effective date for the changes to be made.

The companies expected as likely entrants for the Banking Index are Skye Bank and Unity Bank.

For the NSE 30, likely incoming companies are Fidelity, Sterling, Diamond, Cadbury, and FCMB while Likely Exiting companies are Conoil, UACN, Julius Berger, 7up Bottling and Okomu Oil

For the Industrial Index, Grief Nigeria Plc, First Aluminium, African Paints are likely to join the index while Portland Paints, Paints and coatings Plc and DN Meyer are likely to exit.

The NSE-30 and NSE Industrial Indices are modified market capitalization index with the numbers of included stocks fixed at 30 and 10, respectively.

The stocks are selected based on their market capitalization from the most liquid sectors.

The liquidity is based on the number of times the stock is traded during the preceding two quarters.

FOR MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/06/23/wema-diamond-bank-exit-banking-index-nse-reviews-market-indices/

Moles allegedly planted by the former Director General of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Emeka Mba are leaving no stone unturned to rubbish the rising profile of the current DG, Ishaq Modibbo Kawu.

Reliable sources at NBC squealed that Kawu who has been in the fore front of ensuring a smooth transition from analogue to digital broadcast in the country had to contend with forces within the agency to achieve his dreams

For instance, the moles said to have been beclouded by ethnic sentiments had worked against all laudable plans conceived within the agency to ensure a smooth Digital Switch Over (DSO).

‘’ Yes I can tell you that Modibbo is not given to ethnic jingoism and that is why he’s been able to work with different people irrespective of tribe and background but some of these people are taking this for granted, what they do is to work against the interest of the country, we all know that Modibbo is a man of integrity who does not compromise standard but these moles have continuously frustrated his efforts. I think the right thing to do is for him to flush out these moles and this requires the support of the federal government” An insider who craved for anonymity informed this medium.

Those in the know have commended the new DG for working with the people Mba left behind although it is clear that he is doing this against good advise from well meaning Nigerians that he should change most of them.

“Mallam Kawu is a gentleman. He thought he could work with the team he met on ground. But now, they have shown to be vigorously working against the interest of the country. I hope the wool over his eyes have been removed and he will now make some changes to the Mba team that continues daily to work at cross purposes with him”

“the former DG jettisoned the clear and unambiguous policy of the Federal Government contained in the White Paper for the digital transition, introduced alien licenses and entities into the DSO chain with a view to creaming revenue into private pockets and deny the logical and legal licensees of rights and benefits all in an effort to scuttle the entire process and give advantage to illegal entities and one or two set top box manufacturers who continue to ferry the boxes without any form of accountability despite collecting amounts in excess of N13Billion from NBC.” Mba is reputed to have backdated the license issued to GoTV for personal pecuniary gain after collecting N2Billion for a license worth N10Billion.

Allegations are also rife that ITS may be converting digital exciters from old and obsolete equipment for use in the signal carriage process, a situation that may shortchange unsuspecting Nigerians and which the NBC must checkmate, if found to be true. Durability and reliability of equipment deployed remains critical to consumer confidence.

Our source congratulated the House of Representatives and its sub-committee on the DSO for the very revealing public hearing. Our source states “the public hearing by the sub-committee in house of reps showed that the switch over will continue to be a mirage unless and until things are righted and certain stakeholders kicked out of the DSO process.” However a quick conclusion and submission of the sub committee’s report will help sanitize the DSO process.

The source said that “any plan to remove the illegal entities created by Emeka will be seriously resisted as Emeka, his business partners and selected staff in NBC continue to rake in millions on a daily basis from the anomaly at the expense of the critical investors in the DSO.”

Malam Kawu has been very circumspect in his decision making but also appears to be too slow, given that he has already been in the office for a period of over one year with very little progress in turning things around for the DSO and the good of teeming Nigerians.

He needs to now take the bull by the horns as time is not on his side. This is the only way that the DSO process can be achieved in the shortest possible timeline

Those close to Kawu are perturbed that the reputation he built in the media industry may be tainted by these moles if necessary action is not taken.

He holds a Bachelors degree in Mass Communication and Masters degree in Political Science has deep and varied experience, having reported for Radio Nigeria, Radio France International, Radio Netherlands and BBC World Service.

He was one of the pioneer staff of Radio Kwara, pioneer general manager of Kwara State Television Authority and editor of Daily Trust Newspaper. He was later appointed chairman of the Daily Trust Editorial Board.

Before he was appointed DG NBC he was the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of Abuja-based Word, Sound and Vision (WSV) Multimedia Limited, a media outfit that cuts across print, radio and television.

FOR MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/06/23/plans-rubbish-nbc-boss-ishaq-moddibos-rising-profile-uncovered/

In line with the Federal Government’s recent drive to support growth of SMEs through its policies; Keystone Bank Nigeria Limited has reiterated its commitment to the support of the growth of small and medium scale enterprises in Nigeria. This sentiment was expressed by the Acting Managing Director of the bank, Mr. Hafiz Bakare.

He noted the importance of SME’s to the growth of the economy, stating that the current employment rate could be bolstered if SMEs are provided with a conducive ecosystem with which to thrive and this he said, is not only the purview of the government. “While the government is making efforts to increase the ease of doing business in Nigeria, Financial institutions have a significant role to play in supporting SMEs and this is why Keystone Bank is repositioning its GrowBiz Account to create financial options for businesses”.

Mr. Bakare pointed out the importance of SMEs to the development of the nation’s economy noting that they provide a means of employment generation, improvement of local technology, output diversification, development of indigenous entrepreneurship and forward integration with larger-scale industries. “Today in Nigeria, many factors have contributed to the underperformance of micro enterprises and their contributions to economic growth. We at Keystone Bank seek to help bridge the gap by not only providing finance, but by offering financial advisory services and relevant platforms to assist in business growth”.

Keystone Bank has been at the forefront of supporting micro enterprises as it drives economic growth from the grass roots of the society. Recently, the bank in conjunction with the Enugu State Ministry of Commerce & Industry provided support to Micro, Small and Medium scale enterprises within the state as part of an on-going government initiative.

Growbiz account is designed to meet the needs of business owners and organizations; sole proprietors, partnerships & limited liability companies. The product is available in two variants: GrowBiz Gold Account (with minimum balance); GrowBiz Classic Account (without minimum balance). Each variant is broken down into three segments Individuals, SMEs/Traders, Corporates.

READ MORE HERE: http://theicon.ng/2017/06/20/keystone-bank-restates-support-smes-growbiz-account/

As part of the 2017 Children’s Day celebrations, Keystone Bank Limited partnered Junior Achievement Nigeria (JAN) in conjunction with Uber to host 500 pupils in Lagos State.

The event which held on Thursday 25th May 2017 had participants from Federal Housing Estate Primary School, Victoria Island Primary School, Awoyaya Primary School and Ansarudeen Primary School. All 500 pupils are beneficiaries of Junior Achievement Nigeria’s ‘More Than Money’ scheme, a financial literacy programme which empowers primary 4, 5 and 6 pupils to cultivate better saving and spending habits and also help in the development of soft skills such as commitment, consistency, prioritizing and contentment. The event, which transformed the schools’ compound into fun wonderlands for a day, included food, games, activities and gifts from the sponsors.

In his remarks, Keystone Bank’s Acting Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Hafiz Bakare, stated, “We admire the impact that JAN is creating in the lives of these children which will set them up for a successful future, so we are very proud to get the kids out of the classroom and have some fun.

Mrs. Simi Nwogugu, Executive Director, Junior Achievement Nigeria said, “We decided to celebrate Children’s Day this year with some of our elementary school students who are so hardworking and intelligent, but who do not often get a chance to be celebrated in this way. We thank our sponsors, Keystone Bank and Uber for making this possible.”

Keystone Bank is a technology and service-driven commercial bank offering convenient and reliable solutions to its customers.

FOR MORE, VISIT: theicon.ng/2017/05/26/childrens-day-keystone-bank-junior-achievement-nigeria-celebrate-500-pupils-lagos/

The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has resisted the recent Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) by the federal government and Oando Plc, stating that the later kills jobs.

Earlier Oando entered a deal with the government and Eni (Agip), to manage the Port Harcourt Refinery, under repair, operate and maintain (ROM) arrangement.

But Joseph Ogbebor, NUPENG general secretary, via a statement on behalf of the body, said the arrangement is faulty and should not be consummated with the unions.

“Oando Plc is not a worker-friendly organization as it detests unionization in all its subsidiaries and companies. We are not against the Federal Government’s reforms to overhaul the oil and gas sector, but it should not be to the detriment of workers,” the statement read in part.

“NUPENG will resist the arrangement with Oando if the oil workers are thrown into the unemployment market. The change promised by the present administration is to generate more jobs and not kill jobs which Oando is known for.

FOR MORE, VISIT: http://theicon.ng/2017/05/18/oando-plc-not-worker-friendly-company-nupeng/

On the heels of the announcement of the successful sale of Keystone Bank Limited and the promise of the new investors to take active steps towards turning around its operations in order to become more competitive in the sector, it appears the management of the Bank has proceeded on a drive to give a face-lift to its various branches across the country as part of the post- divestment repositioning.

Our checks with some of the Bank’s customers across the country revealed that a large spectrum of the customers see this as a welcome development laying credence to the earlier statement from the Bank that the new management of the bank will bring about a transformation which will not only be felt by the staff and customers of the bank through the quality of services, but one that also will be tangible.

A lot of the branches have come alive with a new look and the staff now carry out their duties with a lot of confidence.

Many industry experts also believe that this will further engender a positive perception of the brand in the minds of its stakeholders.

Recall that on the 23rd of March 2017, AMCON successfully divested the assets of Keystone Bank Limited and formally handed the Bank over to the Sigma Golf-Riverbank Consortium.

The new owners appear to be moving confidently in line with their plans to reposition the Bank effectively in the industry having followed due process by fulfilling all the necessary regulatory and legal approvals through a transparent process that has been hailed by industry watchers, investment analysts and discerning minds.

It will also be recalled that the process was anchored by a crack team of transaction and legal advisers including KPMG Professional Services, FBN Capital Limited, Citi Bank Nigeria Limited, Giwa Osagie & Co., Banwo & Ighodalo amongst others

This, we discovered is quite reassuring to the customers and has bolstered their confidence in the financial institution as it embarks on its transformation.

MORE HERE: http://theicon.ng/2017/05/12/keystone-bank-revamps-branches/

The House of Representatives ad-hoc committee on Review of Pump Price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) has allegedly uncovered a $270million forex exchange diversion scam involving Ascon Oil Ltd and Folawiyo Energy Ltd.

The committee led by Mr. Nnana Igbokwe (PDP, Imo) made the disclosure on Thursday 4th of May, 2017 at its resumed investigative hearing.
The committee discovered from documents from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that the huge sums of foreign exchange which were collected by the oil traders for the purpose of purchasing petroleum products were diverted for other uses.


READ MORE HERE: http://theicon.ng/2017/05/04/oil-mogul-tunde-folawiyos-firm-ascon-oil-270m-forex-scam/

The House of Representatives ad-hoc committee on Review of Pump Price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) has uncovered a $270million forex exchange diversion scam involving Ascon Oil Ltd and Folawiyo Energy Ltd.

The committee led by Mr. Nnana Igbokwe (PDP, Imo) made the disclosure on Thursday 5th of May, 2017 at its resumed investigative hearing.

The committee discovered from documents from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that the huge sums of foreign exchange which were collected by the oil traders for the purpose of purchasing petroleum products were diverted for other uses.

The committee also queried the oil companies for diversion of petroleum products that were eventually traced to them.

READ MORE HERE: http://theicon.ng/2017/05/04/oil-mogul-tunde-folawiyos-firm-ascon-oil-270m-forex-scam/

Following the suspension of fourteen commercial banks from the FOREX market and the re-instatement of some banks based on provision of evidence of compliance, some more banks have been readmitted into the weekly wholesale spot and forwards intervention market.

Keystone Bank which is currently undergoing a transition following the successful divestment process; was Wednesday readmitted into the spot and wholesale forwards segment of the foreign exchange market by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) following GTBank, First Bank and UBA sequel to the provision of evidence of sales of FOREX to Small and Medium scale Enterprises (SME) since the introduction of the special window for small businesses. The CBN had banned fourteen banks from participating in the weekly wholesale spot and forwards intervention market leaving only eight banks.

According to the CBN, the banks were sanctioned for not adhering to the FX supply policy to SMEs thereby frustrating the efforts of small businesses that needed FOREX. The eight banks that were not originally suspended include; Access Bank Plc, Diamond Bank Plc, Fidelity Bank Plc, Heritage Bank Plc, Jaiz Bank, Sterling Bank Plc, Unity Bank Plc and Zenith Bank Plc.

A source from the CBN stated that; the sale of FX to SMEs has become the “gold standard” for participating in the FOREX market and the CBN would not hesitate to sanction any bank and its officials who circumvent the rules. In addition, other banks were also in the process of providing verifiable proof of compliance and once they do so, they would be readmitted.

The FOREX supply policy to SMEs was introduced as a means to provide small scale businesses with a lifeline as findings showed that they were being crowded out by larger scale firms in the FX market. Under this special arrangement, companies with staff strength of between 10 to 199 and an asset base of N5m to N500m were offered the opportunity to import eligible items within the approved threshold.

FOR MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/05/04/keystone-bank-readmitted-fx-market-evidence-sales-smes/

The House of Representatives ad-hoc committee on Review of Pump Price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) has uncovered a $270million forex exchange diversion scam involving Ascon Oil Ltd and Folawiyo Energy Ltd.

The committee led by Mr. Nnana Igbokwe (PDP, Imo) made the disclosure on Thursday 5th of May, 2017 at its resumed investigative hearing.

The committee discovered from documents from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that the huge sums of foreign exchange which were collected by the oil traders for the purpose of purchasing petroleum products were diverted for other uses.

The committee also queried the oil companies for diversion of petroleum products that were eventually traced to them.

READ MORE HERE: http://theicon.ng/2017/05/04/oil-mogul-tunde-folawiyos-firm-ascon-oil-270m-forex-scam/

A detective with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr. Tosin Owobo, on Tuesday, told a Federal High Court, Lagos, how three ex-Airforce Chiefs, Air Marshall Adesola Nunayon Amosu, a former Chief Air Staff, Air Vice Marshal Jacob Bola Adigun, a former Director of Finance and Budgeting of Nigeria Air Force (NAF), and his deputy, Commodore Gbadebo Olugbenga, used fake Oil and Gas Firms to launder the sum of N5.9 billion. The anti-graft agency official also linked two commercial banks, Skye Bank Plc and First City Monument Bank, FCMB in the alleged fraud.

Owobo, the second prosecution witness in the ongoing trial of the former Airforce Chiefs, gave a graphic detail before Justice Mohammed Idris how the trio diverted the sum of N3 billion received from Nigerian Maritime Safety and Administration Agency (NIMASA) and other monies received from different Nigeria Air Force accounts amounting to N5.9 billion to their personal account.

Air Marshal Amosu, Vice Marshall Adigun, and Commodore Gbadebo, alongside eight limited liability companies are being tried over alleged N22.8 billion fraud. The companies are: Delfina Oil and Gas Limited, Mcallan Oil And Gas Limited, Hebron Housing and Properties Company Limited, Trapezites BDC, Fonds and Pricey Limited, Timsegg Investment Limited and Solomon Health Care.

READ MORE HERE: http://theicon.ng/2017/05/03/armsgate-skye-bank-fcmb-linked-n22-8-bn-money-laundering-scandal/

A blackmailer who claims to be a journalist has landed in Kirikiri Maximum Prison attempting to extort money from a popular clergy in Lagos through blackmail. Ohio Ojeagbase, 38, walked into the net of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad, SARS, after perfecting his extortion plot on Bishop (Dr.) Chris Kwakpovwe, the General Overseer of the Manna Prayer Mountain and publisher of the daily devotional, Our Daily Manna. He was arrested alongside a Lagos-based lawyer, Barr. Uche Iloani accused of working together with Mr. Ohio who owns Probiters Report.

Trouble started for Ohio and his accomplice after they had planted a lady in Bishop Kwakpovwe’s ministry to function as a staff whose job was to feed them with information that could facilitate their blackmail plans on the clergy.

Rita Ibeni, the staff, who worked in the media department of the ministry for about five years, was fingered after a massive looting of the ODM Video Unit of media and video equipment worth N5.6 million. The main suspect and other departmental staffers were arrested. When she was confronted with evidence of the theft, she absconded from the church office. This prompted her arrest at the instance of the ministry and a case was filed at Area H Police Command, Ogudu, Lagos. Upon her arrest, Barr. Iloani, who claimed to be her counsel, came forward to demand for her immediate release with a plea to the ODM and the ministry that the matter would be settled out of court.

FOR MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/04/17/journalist-lawyer-prison-blackmailing-odm-publisher-bishop-chris-kwakpovwe/

A Federal high court sitting in Lagos south west Nigeria has granted Unity bank PLC judicial authority to commence, issue and serve committal proceedings (FORM 48)against, Directors of Diamond bank Plc and Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC).for intentional disobedience of the order of the court.

The affected Directors are: Chairman,Board of directors of Diamond bank Mr Chris Ogbeche, Managing Director /Chief Executive Officer, Diamond bank Mr Uzoma Dozie, Deputy Managing Director, Diamond bank, Caroline Anyanwu.

Managing Director, Nigeria Shell Petroleum development company, SPDC Mr Osagie Ogunbor, Vice -president SPDC, Mr. Peter Costello, and Director SPDC Simbi wabote.

Persons to be cited named above are in charge of the day to day administration and management of the two organisations

FOR MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/04/03/contempt-diamond-bank-shell-directors-trouble/

Following its sale to new investors, Keystone Bank on Tuesday announced the appointment of Alhaji Umaru H. Modibbo and Mr. Hafiz Bakare as board Chairman and acting Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer respectively.
The lender also announced the appointments of Mrs. Yvonne Isichei as Executive Director as well as Mrs. Titilayo Tairat Adebiyi and Mr. Bulus Bunken Dan-Habu- as Non-Executive Directors.

A statement from the lender’s Head, Corporate Communications, Omobolanle Osotule, said the new board is a transitional governance arrangement, which follows: “the successful conclusion of the divestment of Keystone Bank Limited by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), which culminated in the Completion Meeting of 23 March 2017 and the formal handover of the bank to the Sigma Golf-Riverbank Consortium (the Consortium).”

According to the statement: “The transitional governance arrangement, which will take effect from the 1st of April 2017 is subject to approval by the Central Bank of Nigeria. By the 31st of March 2017, the current board of the bank (including the MD/CEO, Mr. Philip Ikeazor) would have fully disengaged, except for Mr. Bakare and Mrs. Isichei, who will continue as part of the transitional governance board.”

Modibbo started his working career as a Commercial Officer in the then Gongola State Civil Service, and would later join the Gongola State Investment Company Limited where he rose to the rank of Senior Investment Executive.

A 1983 graduate of Business Administration from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, Alhaji Modibbo qualified as a Chartered Stockbroker in 1991 and was elected to the Council of The Nigerian Stock Exchange from 1993 to 1996. He is currently a member of the Investors Protection Fund (IPF) of the Nigerian Stock Exchange.

He founded Sigma Pensions Limited, and served as its Managing Director/Chief Executive from 1st February 2011 to 31st October 2016.

Hafiz Bakare is currently the Executive Director, Corporate Bank & Treasury at Keystone Bank Limited also overseeing the Lagos & West Directorate. Before his appointment to the Board of Keystone Bank in July 2014, he was running a management consulting and capacity development firm he founded with the objective of assisting organisations across different sectors to deliver sustainable value in an increasingly challenging and dynamic environment.

READ MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/03/29/%E2%80%8Bkeystone-bank-names-transition-board/

Following the sale of Keystone Bank to Sigma Golf-Riverbank Consortium by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), the new investors have finally taken possession with a view to repositioning the bank immediately.

A statement from the bank said the handover took place last Friday after the Completion Board Meeting to consummate the acquisition and pave way for the takeover was held the previous day (Thursday) with representatives of Sigma Golf-Riverbank Consortium (the Buyer), AMCON (the Seller), Board and Management of Keystone Bank as well as the advisers to the buyer (KPMG Professional Services, Boston Advisory Services, Giwa Osagie & Co., Pan-African Capital Limited) and the Seller (FBN Capital Limited, Citibank Nigeria Limited, Banwo & Ighodalo, CrosswrockLaw).

Recall that AMCON had announced on Tuesday 21stMarch 2017 that Sigma Golf-Riverbank Consortium had acquired Keystone Bank Limited. The Completion Meeting signified the effective hand-over of the bank to the buyer and the commencement of a transition process that will culminate in the reconstitution of the Board and Management of the bank to reflect the new ownership.

Keystone Bank, formerly Bank PHB, was taken over by AMCON in 2011 and has been managed by the AMCON-appointed board and management which stabilised the bank over the years to make it attractive as potential new investors, who emerged as preferred bidders after a very transparent and competitive bidding process.

Analysts believe that the emergence of the Sigma Golf-Riverbank Consortium will bring a new lease of life to Keystone Bank with the expected injection of fresh capital that would position the bank to play competitively in the industry and actualize its full potentials.
“In moving the bank forward as a major player in the industry, the new investors will be backed up by a pool of reputable professionals both currently within the bank and across the industry.
“Keystone Bank, therefore, assures all its stakeholders that the transition process will reposition the bank to serve its customers better, creating enhanced value for all stakeholders”, the statement added.


READ MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/03/27/amcon-hands-keystone-bank-new-investors/

The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) on Monday announced Sigma Golf Nigeria Limited and Riverbank Investment Resources Limited (the Sigma Golf-Riverbank consortium) as the new investors that have acquired the entire issued and fully paid up ordinary shares of Keystone Bank Limited, formerly BankPHB Plc.

This followed the receipt of the necessary regulatory approvals from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
AMCON in a statement on Monday explained that the completion of the transaction was subject to the fulfilment of the conditions precedent as stated in the Share Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) executed between AMCON and the Sigma Golf-Riverbank consortium.

FOR MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/03/21/finally-amcon-sells-keystone-bank-n25bn/

Total Nigeria Plc has been fingered in a multi-billion-naira products diversion scam.

The oil company is also being queried over a N2.1billion indebtedness to the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC).

These came to light in a hearing by the House of Representatives Adhoc Committee on Review of Pump Price of PMS on last week Thursday at the National Assembly.

The committee which on Wednesday summoned the Managing Director of Total plc to appear it to clear issues related to products diversion, raised a fresh allegation of diversion of Foreign Exchange to the tune of $9.1million.

FOR MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/03/20/total-nigeria-9m-petrol-diversion-scam/

Keystone Bank Limited has introduced a live and interactive online business clinic for female small and medium enterprises owners in the country.

The programme, which is being implemented through its Pink Network initiative, was part of the bank’s continuous effort in supporting female entrepreneurs and all SMEs in the country.

The training according to a statement. from the lender, comes in form of Question and Answer (Q&A) sessions on the pinknetwork.ng online platform.

The first in the series, anchored by the Chief Executive Officer of Bug Zappers Ltd., Bukky Soleye, was themed ‘Starting a Business: Basic Structures for Success’.

Soleye, a Pink Network Amazon, is a certified Project Management Professional with over 15 years of experience managing a variety of projects and facilitating project management training for clients.

The session took place in the online forum section of the Pink Network platform and was the first edition of bi-monthly sessions to be held in conjunction with the network’s Pink Amazons and Resource Partners.

The online sessions, tailored after business clinics, provides business mentoring and general business advice to assist entrepreneurs and SMEs connect in real-time question and answer interactions with the right expertise and get practical advice to help overcome issues and information gaps in running their businesses.

The Pink Network online business clinic sessions aim to help businesses set priorities and make the right decisions for success.

Managing Director, Keystone Bank, Mr. Philip Ikeazor, noted that the sessions “are currently open, at no cost, to all SMEs, irrespective of their location in Nigeria.”

He said that further benefits apply to the bank’s Pink Account holders. Ikeazor said the Pink Network is about financial inclusion for women and speaks to the need of every woman.

“In addition to the free online business clinic sessions, other benefits of the Pink Account include a free online storefront onhttps://marketplace.pinknetwork.ng, access to 60 per cent of the CBN MSMEDF set aside for women entrepreneurs, discounts from partner stores/businesses on purchases or services, free SME tool kits from the Enterprise Development Centre for Capacity Building, Zero COT and annual Gift Cards of N50, 000.00 on qualifying annual average balance,” he said.

He reiterated Keystone Bank’s commitment to supporting entrepreneurs, particularly females, which is in line with one of the bank’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) pillars, hence, the strategic reason for creating the Pink network.

MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/03/17/keystone-bank-backs-smes-free-online-training/

Two indigenous downstream petroleum firms are involved in a major scandal that could lead to the sack of three officials of Nigeria’s state oil firm, NNPC, PREMIUM TIMES learnt.

The scandal mainly involves Capital Oil, the firm of controversial businessman, Ifeanyi Uba, and NNPC Retail Services, a subsidiary of the NNPC.

Another indigenous firm, MRS, is also partly involved in it, multiple sources told PREMIUM TIMES.

The scandal involves the illegal use of about 130 million litres of petrol imported by the NNPC downstream and stored in the two depots, one belonging to Capital Oil and the other MRS.

Already, an investigation committee set up by the NNPC Retail, a downstream subsidiary of the NNPC, has recommended the sack of three officials, whose actions or inactions may have led to the scandal occurring.

FOR MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/03/15/ifeanyi-ubahs-capital-oil-mrs-nnpc-officials-fresh-petrol-scandal/

As another election year fast approaches, politicians are back at their usual games. While some are re-strategizing to win the hearts of the people, others are scheming and re-aligning themselves to outdo one another in a bid to reassert their respective relevance in the political scheme of things.

In Delta State, the jostling is currently taking a melodramatic twist and the former governor of the state, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, becomes a major target.

A statement by a group of people under the aegis of Action Youths for Good Governance, AYGG had alerted Deltans of impending attacks on some reputable political figures in Delta including the former governor, and they are being sponsored by some big-name politicians in the state who see the medical doctor as a threat to their ambition. According to the spokesman of AYGG, Felix Obuah, some time ago they had uncovered a plot aimed at either getting rid of Dr. Uduaghan or disabling him politically.

“We want to alert members of the public, most particularly Deltans at home and abroad of the planned attack on the immediate-past governor of Delta state, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan by agents of darkness in the state. The attack will start in the form of mass protests in different parts of the state and outside,” Mr Obuah had declared.

“We know the people involved. They are powerful people in this state who feel threatened by the enormous influence Dr. Uduaghan wields. We know they are after some politicians; those who sacrificed so much so that Delta would be an enviable state that it is today. They want them out of the scene. We know them,’’ he had also stated.

Already, the plot is hatching in phases, and some paid individuals have begun mass protests in different parts of the state, all aimed at discrediting the person of the ex-governor and all he represents.

MORE: http://theicon.ng/2017/03/10/anti-uduaghan-protests-political-gimmick-group/

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