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Ahmad explains overhaul at Skye Bank

By Helen Oji
11 July 2016   |   1:09 am
Ahmed made the clarifications while addressing stockbrokers on recent developments in the bank held on the floor of the Nigeria Stock Exchange in Lagos at the weekend.
Skye Bank

Skye Bank

The new Chairman of Skye Bank Plc, Mohammed Ahmad, has explained that the reconstitution of the board of the bank by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) was an intervention to correct observed corporate governance issues.

Ahmed made the clarifications while addressing stockbrokers on recent developments in the bank held on the floor of the Nigeria Stock Exchange in Lagos at the weekend.

According to him, the ownership of the bank still remains in the hands of the shareholders.

He pointed out that the CBN has not taken over the operations of the bank, rather the apex was working to ensure that the bank is fully stabilised.

“We are here as an intervention team. What happened is a change of board and management. CBN has not taken over the bank. It is still owned by shareholders,” he said.

Ahmad, a former Director-General of National Pension Commission, further re-assured the bank’s customers and investors that the bank was not distressed, but only had corporate governance issues under the old board.

“What happened is an issue of corporate governance not distress. The change in the board is as a result of corporate governance lapses. We would ensure that issues are addressed at the shortest period of time”.

He added that the bank’s fundamentals remain strong and that it remains one of Nigeria’s leading and retail banks.

The Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Tokunbo Abiru, said the board and management would work to achieve value enhancement for shareholders, customers and other stakeholders by bringing the cost-income ratio to industry acceptable levels, improve the risk and assets quality and work towards increasing the liquidity and capital adequacy of the bank.

Abiru described the reconstitution of the bank’s board as an intervention and not a takeover by the CBN, saying the lender’s fundamentals are good and strong.

The CBN had on Monday, last week, approved the reconstitution of the Board of Skye Bank Plc., with the apex bank appointing Mohammed Ahmad and Tokunbo Abiru as the new Chairman and Managing Director  of the bank respectively.

Other members of the reconstituted Board are Bayo Sanni, Idris Yakubu, Markie Idowu and Abimbola Izu, all of whom were serving in the Executive Director capacity of the Bank before now.

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