AmanaOnline

The story of how greed held the banking sector in the jugular and how the rat race to become super stars billionaire bankers brought out the beast in our bankers can only be captured in 2 parts. I’ll attempt to relay them.

Treating one phase in isolation of the other would only present a dim reflection of the daylight robbery and ‘jaguda’ that have characterised the banking sector since the past 3 decades and up till date.

Majority of the banking executives of the twilight of the 90s down to the dawn of the millennium popularly christened yuppies (euphemism for smart crooks) were actually sharks; over ambitious desperadoes masquerading as professionals. They exhibited so much ruthlessness from the onset.

The banking licensing era was a bonanza period no doubt. The coming of the SFEM polluted the sector once dominated by decent, highly disciplined bankers like Chief Sam Asabia, Victor Odozi, Alh Otiti, Chief Dele Falegan, OlisaMbu, Mohd Kollere, Ibrahim Ayagi, Oladele Olashore, Joseph Sanusi, Prof Green Nwankwo, Umaru AbdulMuttalab (father of US bomber) S.O Ogundipe, Subomi Balogun etc.

At the time, banks complied strictly with CBN’s monetary and other prudential guidelines without prompt. Every sectors of the economy including agriculture (with UBA leading others in borrowing to farmers) benefitted tremendously from loan facilities as all banks complied strictly with sectoral lending regulations.

Infractions on lending to productive sectors including SMEs was an exception. Banking was good and bankers served the community excellently well.

And then, the yuppies invaded the scene and changed gradually the culture, nuance and character of the Nigerian banking sector. The stringent rules began to give way, impunity crept in and conservatism – the hallmark of banking- lost its allure to sheer bravado.

The first casualties were the many unsuspecting innocent business persons hoodwinked into putting their monies in the sector. Even though they had the honour and glory of being decorated as owners and chairmen at the time, majority were however totally untutored in banking. That was their greatest undoing.

The first casualties of the ugly, clanish fight in the banking sector were these many ‘naive’ businessmen investors. That many of them had faint clue in the art and science of banking did not help matter.

They were lured into the sector by the liberal policy of the time on bank ownership, (N3 million to set up a Merchant Bank and N5 million for a retail bank) and of course by these smart alecs in Broad Street suits. Many of these investors got manipulated and eventually eased out the banks they promoted and financed by these yuppies using the instrumentality of the market.

Save for few stubborn investors, majority lost their investment in the banks invariably. The yuppies soon came of age, manipulated the books and sent out the investors. It was those magical years of SFEM, FEM, AFEM and those confusing fx lexicons.

The yuppie bankers cunningly stripped investors of their prized possessions; bought them off their heritage – the banks. Many of today’s so-called banker billionaires were mere employees in the banks they now owned just yesterday. Curious?

They went into the banks, acquired muscles and turned against the real owners. How many Nigerians can still remember today that Access Bank was actually owned, promoted and founded by a Chief Farodoye? Yes, Chief Farodoye was a finance man as ex Finance Director in NICON. But he was not tutored in banking. The abracadabra of those forex heady days was only understood by the smart yuppies.

I’m not sure many of us would remember too that there used to be a Prophet Godwin Otubu (Baba Aladura) living around Pen cinema Agege at the time. He owned and promoted Zenith Merchant Bank. Jim Ovia and Godwin Emefiele were just one of the yuppie bankers that helped him in starting the bank. Otubu provided the funds. Today Jim who hitherto was of IMB (International Merchant Bank) on Victoria Island way back before joining ZENITH now parades himself as the owner.

The refusal of Chief Omisade to allow a certain Jimi Lawal to outwit him at Alpha Merchant Bank led to the collapse of the upwardly mobile Bank – one of the fastest growing at the time. Nasir El Rufai (ex Kaduna State Governor) was just an officer in charge of properties at the time in Alpha Merchant Bank where Macaulay Iyayi held court as the CEO. Of course there were other tough investors that fought the ‘smart’ ravaging bankers to a halt.

They simply refused to hand over their patrimonies to the rampaging hawks in suits on a platter of gold. Chief Samuel Adedoyin left his Idunmota ‘Karakata’ to start Industrial bank. Himself and his close friend Otunba Oyin Jolayemi (Daily Needs Industry) who floated Victory Merchant Bank almost got their fingers burnt. They represent few of those stubborn investors that refused to hand over their investment to the yuppies, even though their banks went under as a result.

Baba Olowo – Deji Adeleke fresh from America went into farming in Ede. The yuppie bankers of those times lured him away from farming and made him do Pacific Merchant Bank. His friend Aliko Dangote followed with his own bank. But for their shrewdness they would have lost their respective banks to smart bankers. However, the two banking outfits didnt survive the onslaught. Stubborn investors like these individuals made tactical withdrawals, recouped their investment and allowed the banks to go under rather than allowing themselves be outsmarted by the yuppies.

A certain Revd Fapohunda floated Crest Merchant Bank on a strategic location opposite Eko Holiday in on Victoria Island. Like Chief Farodoye, he was not also lucky. His bank did not survive the onslaught of the rampaging bankers. Erastus Akingbola pursued the man with a hostile bid, took it over and sent the venerable gentleman packing. Revd Fapohunda reportedly begged that he (Erastus) retain his daughter working in the bank after the take over. A plea Erastus declined.

Of course at this time Akingbola had ceased to be the sombre guy marketing the Chartered Institute of Secretaries to whoever that cared to listen on broad street of the late 80’s. Sure Banker (Late Subomi Balogun) had transformed him to a banker of note.Level changed seriously, so also sobriety took flight.

But for providence and smart thinking Oceanic Bank would never have survived. With first class brains like Goddy Oniko, Dr Abraham Nwankwo (who later became Director of the Debt Management Officer at the CBN) at the helm of affairs, the Ibrus wisely planted Cecilia – one of their own – who later became the CEO in the bank as its founding administrative officer.

The Ibrus were ahead of the yuppie bankers in the scheme of things. Not surprising therefore that the Ibru family maintained their stronghold on the bank until it collapsed. Oboden – Cecilia’s son was already in line to succeed her as helmsman of the bank at the time the bank was taken off by ‘market forces’.

More like the infightings among the Jacobins after they’ve successfully demolished the Girondes, the second phase of the ugly development in the banking sector witnessed the bankers now turning against themselves.

Having cunningly hijacked their various banks the stage was now set for infightings among themselves. Of course with 3 strong performing banks in his portfolio, Eratus Akingbola by the twilight of 90’s was undoubtedly the man to beat. The big elephant in the room. A sound professional by any standard, he became the man to see whenever the subject matter concerns bail out.

Baba Oloye’s Société Generale Bank was not seeing the best of time. Oloye’s scion – Bukola Saraki- those were the days before he dabbled into politics- approached Akingbola for a bailout fund. His request was declined for whatever reasons.

They both moved on but Junior Saraki never forgot as Société- the most visible of their family’s investment went down as a result of Akingbola’s refusal to help.

Fast forward to the new millennium, Saraki aside having acquired some political muscles equally had tremendous influence in the apex bank. Sanusi Lamido Sanusi was his classmate in Kings College. He remembered the refusal of Akingbola to help their family sustain their bank and approached Sanusi to help take Akingbola down.

Of course Sanusi did the yeoman job and Intercontinental Bank about one of the strongest banking institutions of the time was brought down mercilessly just for a small infraction which ordinarily would not have qualified for such sledge hammer.

In reality it was nemesis that played out to nail Erastus Akingbola at this time. He merely paid for the wickedness he exhibited years earlier when he greedily took over his friend’s Crest Merchant Bank rather than helping the bank to stay afloat.

Needless to say that Sanusi Lamido met his own waterloo as well in the hands of a Ganduje who stripped him off his inheritance as Emir of Kano. Nemesis never sleeps.

The many dubious acquisitions done in the name of mergers and acquisitions in the sector turned many to overnight billionaire bankers. It is not without the connivance of ‘authority thieves’ that authorised ‘authority stealing’. They were simply granted unfettered access into our commonwealth, plucked as much as they could, use same to purchase our assets and cleverly walked off with their loots.

Sad thing is that they still around, collecting accolades and national honours.

Seriously, they are fit for no where but gaol for their ignominious role in ruining the economy. They are bad advertisement for upcoming generations notwithstanding the amount of billions they’ve made for themselves at the expense of national growth.

*COPIED*