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Shakeup in Firstbank as Adeduntan succeeds GMD Onasanya

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LAGOS-FIRST Bank of Nigeria Limited on Monday announced that its Chief Financial Officer and Executive Director, Dr. Adesola Adeduntan, would replace Mr. Bisi Onasanya as the Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer.

The announcement came on the heels of an earlier notice of Onasanya’s retirement as the GMD/CEO of the lender.

The development came along with major leadership changes at the bank’s parent company, FBN Holdings Plc.

In a statement, the group said the pioneer Group CEO of FBN Holdings, Mr. Bello Maccido, would be leaving his position to become the Chairman of the newly-licensed FBN Merchant Bank Limited.

First bank

First bank

The current Executive Director, South, First Bank of Nigeria, Mr. UK Eke, will replace Maccido as the Group Managing Director-designate, FBN Holdings Plc.

The bank noted that the leadership changes would become effective on January 1, 2016.

Other changes will see the current Chairman, First Bank of Nigeria, Prince Ajibola Afonja, retire and be succeeded by Mrs. Ibukun Awosika.

Announcing the other changes, the bank said in the statement, “Following a rigorous selection process driven by the Board and supported by Heidrick & Struggle, the internationally renowned executive search firm, Dr. Adesola Adeduntan, the current Executive Director/CFO emerged as the Managing Director-designate, First Bank of Nigeria Limited, while Mr. Gbenga Shobo, the current Executive Director, Lagos & West, emerged the Deputy Managing Director-designate.

“This comes on the heels of the group’s earlier notice of Mr. Bisi Onasanya’s retirement as GMD/CEO of the bank. These decisions have been ratified by the Board of Directors, subject to all necessary regulatory approvals and all take effect from January 1, 2016.”

As pioneer Group CEO of the FBN Holdings Group in very critical times, the statement said that Bello birthed the process of establishing the multi-faceted group to comply with diverse regulatory requirements, navigating through uncharted territory.

It added, “He will undoubtedly bring his wealth of experience, spanning over 30 years post call to Bar experience as an accomplished retail, corporate and investment banker, to bear in his new role chairing the Board of the emergent FBN Merchant Bank Limited.

“The incoming Group Managing Director, UK has over 30 years’ post experience in financial services, auditing, consulting, taxation, process engineering and capital market operations.

“Sola, the Managing Director-designate, has garnered diverse expertise in treasury and financial management, risk management, accounting, corporate governance and strategy development, advisory and compliance.”

The new DMD-designate, Gbenga, has a banking career spanning over 25 years with experience in corporate banking, institutional banking, commercial banking, retail banking and treasury, according to the statement.

In announcing the appointments, the Group Chairman, FBN Holdings, Dr. Oba Otudeko, said, “We are proud to announce these appointments. In reaching these decisions, we are mindful of the imperatives for a more efficient group structure that will benefit the group’s need to deploy systems, which deepen efficiency, while expanding revenue and returns on investment.

“We are confident that we have made the right choices in these appointees. In selecting our MD and DMD, we were particularly mindful to identify outstanding and top-notch professionals with complementary and mutually reinforcing skill set.

“These appointments are a testament to the strength of our succession planning mechanisms and the calibre of candidates it produces. It also re-articulates our commitment to put our customers first with the confidence in the value that this new leadership team brings to bear on behalf of the group, customers and employees, even as we strive to return greater value to shareholders.”

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Business

Nigeria pays US$4.9 billion on petrol subsidy in 2024- NNPCL

It was however noted by Biztellers.com.ng, that although subsidy is back in effect, the main reason for that is the increasingly weak state of the Naira and the country’s extreme dependence on products importation. Also unlike the previous subsidy era, where several oil marketers were getting free subsidy refunds for unverified product importation, this subsidy era is witnessing only one importer, the NNPCL, which in effect is the sole receiver of government subsidies. 

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Yemie ADEOYE

INSPITE of the official position of the Nigerian government that the controversial petrol subsidy is gone for good as announced by the President on assumption of office, the state owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL has disclosed that petrol subsidy is still fully operational in Nigeria, although, under a different identity.

Umar Ajiya, Chief Financial Officer at the NNPCL, disclosed that it cost the company a staggering N7.8 trillion (US$4.9) to cover this price gap in the first seven months of 2024.

Rather than simply referring to these claims as subsidies, he stated that the company is merely managing the price difference in petrol imports on behalf of the federation, stressing that this should not be misconstrued as a return to subsidy payments.

This revelation has reignited discussions on whether the NNPC is indirectly offering subsidies, a concept typically defined as selling a product below its cost price.

Documents reviewed by Biztellers.com.ng showed that the term “subsidy” was used extensively in official correspondence between the NNPCL and the presidency, particularly in reference to the “shortfall.”

Recall that President Bola Tinubu reportedly approved NNPC’s request to utilize the 2023 final dividends due to the federation to offset these costs.

However, during a media briefing on Monday about the company’s 2023 audited financial statements, Ajiya refuted claims that the NNPC is involved in any subsidy scheme.

Ajiya further disclosed that the Nigerian government owes the NNPC N7.8 trillion ($4.9 billion) in subsidy-related debts for the period from January to July 2024.

In furtherance of his clarification to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Ajiya insisted that no subsidy payments have been made to any marketer in the last nine years, citing the NNPC’s role as the sole importer of petrol under supply contracts.

He said, “In the last eight to nine years, NNPC Ltd. has not paid anyone a dime as a subsidy; no kobo has been disbursed by NNPC Ltd. in the name of subsidy. No marketer has received any payment from us for subsidy.”

“What has been happening is that we have been importing PMS, which has been landing at a specific cost price, and the government tells us to sell it at half price. So the difference between the landing price and that half price is a shortfall.

“And the deal is between the Federation and NNPC Ltd., to reconcile, sometimes they give us money, so there is no money exchanging hands with any marketer in the name of subsidy.”

Ajiya remained silent on how much of the $4.9 billion could have been remitted to the federation account if the NNPC had not been covering the “shortfall.”

It was however noted by Biztellers.com.ng, that although subsidy is back in effect, the main reason for that is the increasingly weak state of the Naira and the country’s extreme dependence on products importation. Also unlike the previous subsidy era, where several oil marketers were getting free subsidy refunds for unverified product importation, this subsidy era is witnessing only one importer, the NNPCL, which in effect is the sole receiver of government subsidies.

 

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Banking

CBN Denies Currency Devaluation

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CBN Pegs Interest Rate at 14%

 

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has refuted claims of devaluing the.

 

Earlier reports suggested that the CBN had devalued the Naira, lowering its exchange rate from N631 to the dollar, compared to the previous day’s rate of N461.60 at the Importers and Exporters (I&E) window.

 

However, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) released a statement on Thursday through its Acting Head of Corporate Communications, Dr. Isa Abdulmumin, categorizing the report as false information.

 

In the statement titled ‘CBN Has Not Devalued The Naira’, he said the attention of the apex bank was drawn to the news report by an Abuja based newspaper edition of June 1, 2023, titled “CB Devalues Naira To 630/51”.

 

However, the CBN stated categorically that the news report was replete with outright FALSEHOODS and destabilizing innuendos, ‘reflecting potentially willful ignorance of the said medium as to the workings of the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market.’

 

“For the avoidance of doubt, the exchange rate at the Investors’ & Exporters (I&E) window traded this morning (June 1, 2023) at N465/USS1 and has been stable around this rate for a while.

 

“The public is hereby advised to ignore the news report by Daily Trust in its entirety, as it is speculative and calculated at causing panic in the market,” the CBN spokesman added.

 

He, therefore, advised media practitioners to verify their facts from the Central Bank of Nigeria before publishing in order not to misinform the public.

 

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Banking

BREAKING: CBN Increases Interest Rate By 0.5%

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CBN Pegs Interest Rate at 14%

 

The interest rate in Nigeria has been raised to 18.5 percent, up by 0.5 percent, from 18 percent where it was pegged in March 2023.

 

The Central Banks of Nigeria’s (CBN) Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) resolved to this effect at its third meeting of 2023 in Abuja, on Wednesday.

 

Governor, CBN, Godwin Emefiele, made the disclosure in the communiqué of the MPC’s meeting,  thereafter.

 

While engaging the media at the end of the two-day meeting, Emefiele, said the committee voted to keep the asymmetric corridor at +100 and -700 basis points around the MPR.

 

In the view of the MPC, rising inflation rate is traceable to the high energy cost and challenges around the supply chain, among others, which lie outside the corridors of the CBN.

 

Emefiele said, “The current trend in price development would continue to be monitored by the bank with greater collaboration with fiscal authority to address the drivers of inflation.”

 

Biztellers reports that the CBN had effected six consecutive interest rate increases, which has seen the rate move from 11.5 percent in March 2022 to 18.5 percent in May 2023.

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