The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Banks

  • CBN may reopen banks’, IOCs’ dollar windows to BDCs

    CBN may reopen banks’, IOCs’ dollar windows to BDCs

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is likely to reopen the dollar sales by banks and International Oil Companies (IOCs) to bureau de change (BDC) operators, The Nation learnt yesterday.

    The policy shift is part of the modalities to be unveiled by the apex bank on the newly introduced flexible exchange rate policy, President, Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Alhaji Aminu said.

    He said with the liberalisation of the foreign exchange market, foreign investors are expected to pump in nearly $12 billion to the economy, and such funds should be accessed by the BDCs.

    “We’re waiting for CBN’s modalities on the new foreign exchange window. We would want to see a circular authorising banks and IOCs to sell dollar to BDCs. We would also want the CBN to set limit on how much dollar a BDC can access from the banks or IOCs,” he said.

    Gwadabe said the BDC operators are no longer interested in getting dollar from the official forex window, because of the challenges being faced by the country in terms of foreign exchange scarcity.

    The CBN had in February, stopped, with immediate effect, sale of dollars (forex) through the Retail Dutch Auction System (RDAS) and interbank to BDC operators.

    A circular to authorised dealers signed by CBN Director, Trade & Exchange, Olakanmi Gbadamosi, however said the weekly sales of forex to BDCs will be sustained by the CBN based on the liquidity needs of the market.

    He explained that the regulator took the decision based on ongoing review of developments in the foreign exchange market and the need to check speculative demand in the market.

    Both the interbank and RDAS funds, he said, should be used for strictly funding of Letters of Credits, Bills for Collection and other invisible transactions. However, this is subject to appropriate documentation as provided by extant regulations.

    The RDAS and interbank funds, he said, should no longer be sold to BDCs and other authorised dealers. “In continuation of the review of developments in the foreign exchange market and to curb speculative demand in the market, both the RDAS and interbank funds should henceforth be used, strictly for funding of Letters of Credits, Bills for Collection and other invisible transactions. It is also subject to appropriate documentation as provided by extant regulations,” Gbadamosi said.

  • Banks join NLC strike in Calabar

    Some banks in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, were closed Friday as the strike by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) entered its third day.

    However, other banks were open for business.

    The closed banks had notices by the NLC calling for workers to stay at home until the hike in petrol price and electricity tariff is reversed.

    The leadership of the NLC in the state accompanied by some state and federal workers Friday continued its march through major streets in Calabar to register their protest.

    Government offices and public schools remained shut.

    The NLC had on Thursday gone round markets in Calabar urging them to shut down.

    Led by its chairman, Comrade John Ushie, markets visited included Watt, Etim Edem, Bedwell, Chamley and Bogobiri.

    Ushie addressing the market men and women said the protest was not to ask government to increase their salaries but for the betterment of all Nigerians by reducing the price of fuel.

    He enjoined them to join in shutting down the economy as that will make the government to change its “inhuman decision which has made prices of goods and commodities to increase geometrically.”

    But it was observed yesterday that the markets were open and operating as usual.

  • CBN’s stress test shows two banks in trouble

    CBN’s stress test shows two banks in trouble

    The Capital Adequacy Ratios (CARs) of  two banks have fallen below regulatory capital requirement of 10 per cent, the result of stress test conducted by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on the status of the banking system has revealed.

    The solvency stress test, contained in the Financial Stability Report, released yesterday by the CBN governor,  Godwin Emefiele, classified lenders into three groups: large banks, those with assets greater than or equal to N1 trillion; medium banks with assets greater than or equal to N500 billion but less than N1 trillion and small banks with assets of less than N500 billion.

    The CAR is a ratio of bank’s assets to its risks and is 10 per cent for national banks and 15 per cent for banks with international subsidiaries and 16 per cent for Systematically Important Banks (SIBs). The test result showed that one of the affected banks had CAR of 1.29 per cent before the test, while two banks had 0.78 per cent and 8.2 per cent after the test.

    The stress test captured the idiosyncratic nature of individual bank’s balance sheet and macro-prudential concerns, using the bottom-up and top-down approaches. The exercise covered the 23 commercial and merchant banks, using the credit, liquidity, interest, foreign exchange rates and foreign exchange trading risks elements.

    The report, which measured the lenders’ positions as at December last year, showed that overall, there was high risk through unsecured interbank exposure.

    The result of the test also revealed that after a one-day run, the liquidity ratio for the industry would decline to 33.4 per cent from the 48.57 per cent pre-shock position and to 10.24 per cent after a cumulative 30-day run. A five-day and cumulative 30-day run on the banking industry would result in a liquidity shortfall of N1.79 trillion and N1.93 trillion, respectively.

    The test further revealed that 17 and 20 banks would record liquidity ratios below the prudential threshold of 30 per cent, following the five-day and cumulative 30-day run, respectively.

    There was a marginal decline in the quality of assets in the banking industry last December, compared with the position at end of June 2015. The ratio of non-performing loans to gross loans increased by 0.21 percentage point to 4.86 per cent while the decline in asset quality was attributed to the unfavourable macro-economic environment in the review period.

    The banking industry and large banks’ resilience to credit risk was robust. A simulated severe shock of a 200 per cent rise in NPLs resulted in CARs of 12.77 and 16.52 per cent for banking industry and large banks, respectively, which were above the 10 per cent required regulatory minimum.

    However, medium and small bank groups showed vulnerabilities to severe shocks of 200 per cent rise in NPLs as their CARs fell to 7.16 and 6.85 per cent respectively.

    Emefiele said the general decline in commodity prices, China’s efforts at rebalancing its economy and the gradual tightening in US monetary policy all combined to hamper growth in many emerging market economies, including Nigeria.

    He said the key task that faced monetary authorities in Nigeria in the reporting period centered on the use of effective policy tools to ensure that the shocks arising from instability in the global economy were not fully transmitted to the domestic economy.

    The CBN, he said, continued to ensure that the stability of the financial system was maintained and confidence in the system was sustained. The policy tool kit included both conventional and unconventional measures and these enabled us to respond to the emerging challenges.

  • Banks explain role in EFCC probe

    Banks explain role in EFCC probe

    Sterling Bank and Access Bank have notified the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) about their operations concerning the ongoing probe by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

    The banks on Tuesday issued separate statements to the NSE about investigations into their roles by the anti-graft agency.

    These  statements were posted on the NSE’s  website.

    Sterling Bank in its statement explained that officials of EFCC visited the bank on Wednesday May 4, 2016 to investigate a banking relationship of a non-bank financial institution.

    It said it never held the account of the customer during the previous administration to which the matter had been linked either officially or otherwise.

    The bank also stated that the non-bank financial institution (Asset Management Company) purchased a number of loans on recourse basis from it on commercially acceptable terms.

    The statement said the transactions were the concerns raised by the EFCC to Sterling Bank.

    The bank said: “Arising from this incident, the bank has commissioned a review of the compliance procedures of its non–bank financial institution clients with the aim of strengthening this area of our operations.

    “In the interim, the bank will not accept any new non-bank financial institution relationships.

    “We thank our numerous partners for their support and assure you that the bank remains a compliant institution that continues to conduct its business within the ambit of the law.”

    On its part, Access Bank said the EFCC officials visited the bank on May 6, 2016 to investigate a specific transaction involving a customer of the bank in the normal course of business.

    The visit, according to the bank, came without any form of earlier notification or invitation to the bank.

    The bank said the officials informed the bank that they were investigating some transactions and sought the bank’s cooperation.

    The officials, according to the bank, met with the Group Managing Director and the Bank’s Chief Compliance Officer who provided the needed information and documents.

    “Thereafter, the Group Managing Director was requested to accompany them to their office to further their investigation, which he willingly acceded to.

    “Following the resolution of the underlying issues, he was allowed to leave the commission’s office on the same day.

    “We have observed the wide-ranging speculations in the media connecting the visits of the commission to various personalities.

    “We would like to state emphatically for the benefit of our stakeholders that the bank has absolutely no link, interaction or relationship whatsoever with any of the personalities stated in the media reports.

    “As a bank, we shall continue to operate in line with the highest level of professionalism, consistently seeking best practices, and hereby wish to re-assure our esteemed stakeholders that the bank remains committed to its strategic goals and objectives,” it said.

  • Banks may dump TSA over unpaid fees

    Banks may dump TSA over unpaid fees

    Twenty Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) involved in the implementation of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) are considering dumping the support services they are rending to see the effective execution of the project over unpaid fees, The Nation has learnt.

    The lenders are bitter that their human and material resources are being deployed to successfully execute the project, yet the agreed fees are not paid.

    SystemSpecs, the owner company of Remita, the e-payment and e-collection software deployed by the federal government to drive the TSA said it was yet to receive fees for its services after returning N3.8 billion to the Federal Government after the Senate kicked against the fees. The 20 participating banks also refunded N3.05 billion while the CBN refunded about N760.96 million under the fee-sharing ratio.

    SystemSpecs’ Executive Director, ‘Deremi Atanda, said at the commencement of the project in May 2012, that it was agreed that one per cent of the sums collected from Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) would be deducted and shared among SystemSpecs, the banks and the CBN in ratios of 0.5 per cent, 0.4 per cent and 0.1 per cent respectively.

    Atanda, who spoke at a media briefing in Lagos, said the company is not satisfied that its services are not being paid for in the last 14 months, a situation that is putting its finances under pressure. “We’re a software company and totally Nigeria. The knowledge economy has come of age, but Nigeria is still dependent in international companies,” he said.

    Continuing, he said: “There is a value added to some natural resources. We want to focus on agriculture and mining while we are leaving the frontier where the world is competing, which is intellectual property. We need to develop areas where we have comparative advantage.”

    He said the company developed software that can be used anywhere in the world. “Why is the government not looking at it as national asset that can be a net forex earner?” he queried.

    He said the country should stop depending on other developed countries to solve its technology challenges.

    He said the company won and delivered World Bank project on technology under competitive bidding process.

    “We are not begging, but just give us opportunity to thrive. The success of TSA is the victory of technology in solving everyday governance problems. Remita was not developed for TSA, but it can solve the problem. Nobody is talking about the technology having failed. It has solved a problem. The controversy is about commercial terms. Now after the problem is solved, government now thinks it is expensive,” he said.

     

  • Banks divert $10b to unlicensed BDCs

    Banks divert $10b to unlicensed BDCs

    Banks are diverting dollar sales previously allocated to licensed Bureaux De Change (BDC) operators to unlicensed BDCs or currency hawkers, an investigation by The Nation has revealed.

    An estimated $10 billion may have been sold by the lenders to the currency hawkers in the last four months under the dubious arrangement.

    During investigation at  bank branches in Ikeja, Ogba and Maryland, and Broad Street in Marina, currency hawkers were seen  making huge cash (naira) deposits into their accounts to enable them obtain dollar from the lenders.

    Much of the funds, sourced by the banks from unofficial sources especially from the International Oil Companies (IOCs), Diaspora remittances, and dollar earnings by Nigerians at home, is sold to currency hawkers at higher margins of between N280 and N290 to dollar.

    The currency hawkers are not guided by Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN’s) rules on quarterly foreign exchange (forex) returns filling.

    A BDC source told The Nation that the 3,000 licensed BDC operators have not only lost over N12 billion in the last four months since the CBN stopped weekly dollar allocations to them, but have not been able to sustain their once thriving businesses.

    The source said annual Diaspora remittances to Nigeria alone are estimated by the World Bank at $20.8 billion, even as the BDCs are being denied access to the funds.

    The source accused the CBN of closing its eyes to the malpractices in forex market including outright refusal to monitor the rates at which the dollar is sold in the autonomous market.

    When contacted, CBN Acting Director of Communications, Isaac Okoroafor, said the regulator does not control transactions taking place in unofficial markets.

    He said: “The interbank market is a segment of the market where we control. There are other sources of getting forex. We can’t control the unorthodox market because as more dollars come in, it helps to moderate the exchange rate.

    “We do not control how banks sell dollars sourced from the unofficial sources. We are not in anybody’s bedroom to see how they get their dollars and how they sell them. But the ones under our control, we look at how they obtain the dollar and how they sell them. And the rules are there, they are all published”.

    President, Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Alhaji Aminu Gwadabe confirmed that licensed BDCs are the biggest losers under the CBN’s forex sales policies.

    He told The Nation that an average licensed BDC operator makes a minimum of N1 million profit monthly and files returns to the CBN on all its transactions. This comes to average of N3 billion monthly for the 3,000 licensed BDCs.

    “The stoppage of dollar sales to licensed BDCs  is now in its fourth month, has shown that our members have lost N12 billion within this period and there is nothing being done by the CBN to cut these loses,” he said.

    “As a group, we condemn the practice. People that previously condemned BDCs are now conniving with banks in ripping off the economy pretending that everything is fine. They should be called to order. As a licensed BDC, I should be allowed to sell dollars to my customers provided I provide genuine documentation. Banks that are supposed to advocate transparency are the ones violating the rules of the game,” he said.

    ABCON has under Gwadabe, held several meetings with the CBN management on the need to bridge dollar liquidity crisis by sourcing petrodollars from IOCs and other autonomous sources and selling to licenced BDCs at controlled prices. The CBN also promised to directly intervene in selling dollars to the BDCs when market liquidity improves but this is yet to be done.

    “We have held meetings with the CBN and sent proposals to them on the matter. Licensed BDCs should be made agents of payment, and should be allowed to receive Diaspora remittances funds. That market still remains largely untapped. We have also accepted to ensure that our members follow the regulatory guidelines and not sell dollars obtained through the autonomous sources over the required margin,” he said.

    Gwadabe explained that the BDCs do not have the capacity to deal directly with the IOCs because of the intricate nature of the transactions, but will rely on the CBN’s expertise and experience to handle the transactions.

  • Banks seek CBN’s guarantees on N220b MSMEs’ fund

    Banks seek CBN’s guarantees on N220b MSMEs’ fund

    •FirstBank charts way forward for SMEs’ growth 

    Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) have tabled before the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), a proposal asking the apex lender to guarantee commercial bank loans to the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) operators.

    The guarantee, according to Deputy Managing Director, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Gbenga Shobo, would apply only to customers accessing loans from the N220 billion MSMEs’ Fund.

    Speaking at the 2016 Entrepreneurship Development Centre/FirstBank SME Breakfast Series tagged: The Economy and You!, he said banks needed CBN’s guarantees to lend the funds to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

    He said the practice is already being implemented in other countries, and had helped to boost lending to small businesses in those countries.

    “These are one of the suggestions on the table. There many suggestions, but they picked this particular model. They are worried that many borrowers look at the loans as part of national cake. You go there, take the loan and refuse to pay. We know that if the CBN guarantees the loans, even if the customer doses not pay back, the CBN will pay. It has been done in other countries and we have seen the impact on SMEs’ lending. We must all find a way whereby we make it work,” he said.

    The MSMEs’ Fund was launched by the CBN as part of its developmental role and mandate of promoting a sound financial system. This was in recognition of the significant contributions of the MSME sub-sector to the economy. It said the sub-sector is characterised by huge financing gap, which hinders the development of MSMEs.

    Shobo urged SMEs’ operators not to be discouraged by the ongoing economic challenges facing the country. He advised the operators to identify key sectors of the economy where opportunities for businesses are available.

    “The economy is facing some challenges, but opportunities still abound. Our population of about 186 million means that if provide services that we need internally, we can still make profit,” he said.

    He said Nigeria’s population is a huge business opportunity that should interest discerning entrepreneurs, hence the need to carefully study and understand Nigeria business environment.

    Shobo said FirstBank will continue to support the SMEs because of the critical role they play in creating jobs and economic development for the country. He disclosed the level of non-performing loans in the banking industry is also a disincentive for new lending. “As banks explain the bad loans in their books, they will be less ready to give out new loans. That is why SMEs operators should always ensure they repay back their loans at the agreed time,” he said.

    He identified the agricultural and educational sectors as key segments of the economy where huge opportunities abound. “We have been lending a lot to private schools. It is an industry that people haven’t found out earlier. I want the SMEs to embrace the new technology that is driving today’s businesses,” he said.

    Chief Economist, FirstBank, Ifeanyi Uddin, said since Nigeria’s population is largely youthful, there are huge investment opportunities in manufacturing of goods that are predominantly consumed, and service offerings that are preferably accessed, by the youths.

    “Clearly, the business environment in Nigeria is challenging, but there are hopes that with right leadership and reforms, the environment will soon improve. Sixteen out of 46 economic activity sectors in Nigeria have GDP size in excess of N1 trillion each. There are yet-to-be tapped inherent opportunities in the sectors,” he said.

    Uddin explained that government’s apparent moves to enhance transparency and accountability in the sector will open up investment opportunities across the industry’s value chain. He disclosed that with estimated 40 million litres of daily petrol consumption and export opportunities to neighbouring countries, downstream subsector of the oil industry is the next frontier in oil and gas industry.

  • Fuel importation: ‘Banks don’t lend to most operators’

    Over 70 per cent of oil marketers eligible to import fuel are not doing so because banks are not lending money to them, the Chairman, Integrated Oil and Gas Limited, Captain Emmanuel Ihenacho, has said.

    He said banks were not lending to operators in the downstream because of paucity of funds and the inability of operators to repay with interest as agreed upon.

    He said the banks’decision to impose restrictions on lending has compounded the woes of indigenous oil and gas operators further as they have to operate at below the capacity level.

    He said: “More than 70 per cent of the operators in the nation’s oil sector want to import fuel in the wake of lopsided performance of the refineries, but unable to do so because banks have shut the window to advance credit to them for reasons best known to them. In view of this, the operators rely on fuel allocations or supplies from the Federal Government.“

    Ihenacho said the country needed to adopt and implement a policy that is geared towards making the refineries refine more crude oil in order to proffer solution to the perennial fuel crisis and its attendant problems in Nigeria.

    “There is a need for a paradigm shift from importing to refining in-country. This shift can only be made possible when more refineries are allowed to operate. Why can’t we encourage companies to establish more refineries to meet fuel needs of operators in the downstream sector and the consumers,” he asked.

    Ihenacho said lack of a workable operation plan is killing initiatives by the Federal Government to move the downstream sub-sector of the oil and gas forward, adding that to improve the downstream sub-sector, government needs to restructure it.

    He said deregulation of the downstream segment of the industry cannot be possible unless private entities invest in refineries.

    Ihenacho said subsidy is a drain on the government’s purse, stressing that trillions of naira have been paid as subsidies to fuel importers in the last few years.

    He urged the government to remove subsidies, and also provide environment that is conducive for private refineries to operate, adding that the idea would help in reducing the fiscal challenges, which the country is facing.

  • Banks strengthen offshore operations

    Banks strengthen offshore operations

    Many banks are deepening their presence abroad after meeting the N100 billion minimum shareholders’ funds required by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to operate offshore subsidiaries. To FirstBank, GTBank, Skye Bank, Access Bank and Diamond Bank, among others, providing banking services abroad is not only a show of strength, but   an expansion of brand promise, writes COLLINS NWEZE. 

    Nigerian banks made history in the post-consolidation era. They were counted among the first 1,000 in the globe, with many going into offshore expansion in key economies of the world. Banks’ vaults were breaking with excess funds realised from public offers and huge liability base created by renewed confidence in the sector.

    Since the 2005 consolidation era to date, lenders are opening foreign operations to show their strength, class and opportunity in serving the unbanked across regions.

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had set N100 billion minimum benchmark for a bank’s offshore licensing, in order to ensure that only highly liquid lenders operate offshore units. The Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) for banks with offshore subsidiaries is 15 per cent minimum requirement, which rose to 16 per cent by March 1, last year for Systemically Important Banks (SIBs).

    Managing Director, Financial Nigeria International, Jide Akintunde praised moves by the banks, saying  big lenders create multinational companies.

    He explained that the Standard Bank, Citi Bank, Stanbic IBTC Bank and Ecobank are some of the few international banks with subsidiaries in Nigeria that have demonstrated that it pays to have offshore operations. These banks are not only spreading across the country, they are also capturing key businesses.

    But others are learning fast too. Guaranty Trust Bank is in more than five countries, including the United Kingdom  (UK) while Union Bank is in the UK, South Africa and Ghana. Others are Diamond Bank in the Republic of Benin, Access Bank in the UK and Ghana; Zenith Bank also in Ghana and the UK to mention, but a few.

    FirstBank is one of the lenders deepening its African footprints and has completed integration of new subsidiaries in six African nations. Leveraging on the experience that has spanned over a century of dependable services, the lender has continued to build relationships and alliances with key sectors of the economy.

    As the global operating environment evolves, it has kept pace, responding to the dynamic needs of its customers, investors, regulators, host communities, employees and other stakeholders.

    Through a balanced approach to plan execution, it has consolidated its industry leadership by maintaining trans-generational appeal. Thus, the bank has continuously boosted its customer-base, which cuts across all segments in terms of size, structure and sectors through expansion to six Africa countries.

    FirstBank has its footprints in the UK and France through its subsidiary, FBN Bank (UK) Limited with branches in London and Paris; and in Johannesburg, Beijing and Abu Dhabi with its representative offices there.

    In October 2011, the bank acquired a new subsidiary, Banque International de Credit (BIC), one of the leading banks in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

    In November 2013, FirstBank acquired ICB in The Gambia, Sierra-Leone,  Ghana and  Guinea, and in 2014, the Bank acquired ICB in Senegal. The unveiling of the FBNBank Senegal refreshed brand identity in January this year. It is a major landmark in its plan for growing its sub-Saharan African footprints and the banks have all transited into FBNBank in their respective locations.

    Speaking on this development, the Group Managing Director/CEO of FirstBank, Dr. Adesola Adeduntan, said the lender’s expansion into the Sub-Saharan Africa markets clearly aligns with “our strategic ambition to steadily broaden and build a more diverse footprint across Africa”.

    “We are committed to developing a multi-local business model that broadens our geographic revenue base while providing bespoke financial services solutions across the value chains of our customers with cross-border financing needs,” he said.

    The bank’s Group Head, Marketing & Corporate Communications, Folake Ani-Mumuney, said the lender is well-diversified, maintains the leading position in many of the markets in which it operates, and has a leading distribution capability and a well recognised brand with a large customer base.

    “With over 800 business locations in Nigeria, all on-line and real time, the Bank has one of the largest domestic sales networks in the country. As a market leader in the financial services sector, FirstBank pioneered initiatives in international money transfer and electronic banking in the country, serving more than 10 million customer accounts,” she said.

    She explained the lender’s  strategy has been focused on restructuring the business to take advantage of growth opportunities within the industry, pursuing business line expansion across strategic business units, continuously implementing a systematic international expansion plan, sequencing its growth initiatives across defined metrics, as well as building synergies and cross-selling across the FirstBank Group.

    “This strategy supports the bank’s vision of being the leading sub-Sahara African financial services group. Continued implementation of this strategy will produce long-term profitable growth as well as build great franchises and deliver value to all stakeholders. The focus of the bank in terms of international expansion remains the financial services markets in sub-Saharan Africa,” she said.

    Skye Bank Plc led by its Group Managing Director/CEO Timothy Oguntayo, introduced a funds transfer service within its network of subsidiaries in Nigeria, The Gambia, Sierra Leone and Guinea to boost trade and facilitate payment in the West African sub region.

    The new funds transfer service, known as African Payment Service, is available in all the bank’s branches in Nigeria and in the countries where it has presence, and is open to both account and non account holders.

    The bank said the new offering is convenient, secure, cost effective, fast and reliable, adding that the service enhances the security of the transfer via the use of scratch cards.

    Former Executive Director of Bank PHB, Richard Obire, said offshore banking comes with certain benefits such as opening up of the banking industry to national and pan-regional players. He predicts that despite the pressure from the CBN on the banks, competition in the operating environment enhances local banks’ commitment to providing relevant banking products and strong local service.

  • Banks channel forex to investors exiting equities, bond markets

    Banks channel forex to investors exiting equities, bond markets

    Foreign investors repatriating profits and others exiting the Nigeria equities and bond markets last week triggered a rise in foreign exchange (forex) disbursement by leading banks.

    Many of the investors, after liquidating their investments, secured forex to repatriate their funds through Stanbic IBTC Bank. The lender disbursed $19,305,571.50 to 68 customers,   according to published disbursement data for last week.

    JPM London secured $3,331,564.24 from Stanbic IBTC for its divestment of equities and Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) Bonds. There was also $2,010,690.01 disbursed to State Street/Stanbic Nominees-E by the lender for the same purpose.

    BP2S/BNP Pribas obtained $130,167.61; Standard Bank of South Africa, $541,671.31; Merrill Lynch International $63, 767.89; HSBC Funds Services London, $394,210.30; and The Bank of New York Mellon 2, $206,317.82.

    The foreign investors have been pressurising the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to devalue the naira, which it has vehemently resisted. Last week’s repatriation of investments is expected to continue in the months ahead as the margin between the official exchange rates has continued to widen.

    The naira/dollar exchange rate remained unchanged at N197 to dollar at the CBN and N199.50/US$1 at the interbank market. At the Bureau-De-Change, the naira appreciated against the dollar marginally on all trading days of last week, with the Naira/Dollar rate trending lower from N322.00/$1 on Tuesday (appreciating N1 from Thursday) to close at N320/$1.00 on Friday. The parallel market was also stable as Naira/Dollar traded for N323/$1 on all trading days save for Wednesday when it rose marginally to N324.00/$1.

    Stanbic IBTC also disbursed $6 million in three tranches to Rain Oil for the importation of petroleum products and $1,082,440.37 to GZ Industries Limited for aluminum coils import and $100,000 in Personal Travel Allowances (PTAs) to 25 customers.

    Diamond Bank led other lenders with $20,084,368 disbursed to 222 customers, mainly for school fees payment, PTAs and importation of petroleum products.

    Zenith Bank Plc disbursed $13, 107,525.71 to 362 customers. The lender disbursed $3,646,399.15 to Tiger Branded Consumer for Canadian Milling Wheat. Virgin Atlantic got $1 million for air ticket sales remittance.

    Oando Marketing secured $360,000 in two tranches for importation of petroleum products. The bank also made disbursements to Seven-Up Bottling Company Plc; Sonia Foods Industries Limited; Emerging Markets Telecom Services; Boulous Enterprises Limited; Honeywell Flour Mills Plc. There were several Personal Travel Allowances (PTAs), among others.

    United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc also disbursed forex to 242 customers. Some of the big beneficiaries are: Total and Eterna Oil which accessed $1,201,649.61 and $1, 449,358.03 restively. The lender also funded $1 million remittance tickets for IATA and several other transactions for school fees payment.

    FirstBank disbursed $6 million in two tranches to Gulf Treasures Limited for the importation of petroleum products. There was also $1.943,612.48 disbursed to Elephant Group Limited for NPK -15-15-15 bulk importation. The bank also disbursed to customers for the payment of school fees and PTAs.

    Other lenders that got forex are Diamond Bank, GTBank, First City Monument Bank, Wema Bank.

    The funds were sourced from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and sold to the beneficiary customers at the official rate of N197.50 to dollar. The beneficiaries used the funds for the importation of goods, services and other items that fall within the CBN-stipulated import approval list.

    CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele has consistently assured stakeholders that the country will continue to meet financial obligations to foreign investors and her international trading partners.

    The weekly publications on forex utilisation are meant to promote transparency and accountability on the side of the lenders, which act as a link between the regulator and the forex users.