FG to prosecute directors of defunct Skye Bank

THE Federal Government has promised to prosecute all those found to be responsible for the failure of the erstwhile Skye Bank Plc.

Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, who disclosed this on Friday directed the Managing Director of Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim to ensure a through investigation into how the bank was ran aground.

Speaking during a familiarisation visit to the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), in Abuja,  the Minister said: “The example of the recently  distressed Sky Bank, now Polaris Bank, is something we would look into. We would find out what happened. Your investigation must be thorough, we are going to hold whoever was responsible for the failure of that bank.

“We have to show some examples, we can not just be bailing out banks and leaving perpetrators of the failure of these banks to just go scot-free. Even though you intervene by protecting depositors, but your intervention is limited.

“You’re not able to payback all that the depositors have. We must show some examples and this is a good one for us to start with,”  the minister said.

Ahmed stressed the need for the NDIC to continuously monitor the banks to ensure that problems are detected early and solved before they become crises.

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“The role that you have in monitoring banks should be continuous, because if you capture these issues early, there is a better chance of us protecting these banks, protecting shareholders and depositors,” the Minister said.

She commended the NDIC for adherence to the requirements of the fiscal responsibility act by constantly paying its operational surpluses to the Federal Government.

“I can confirm to you that just within this week, the sum of N15billion was received by the Federal Government and this brings to about N107billion that NDIC has paid to date,” she said.

Ahmed said the job of the NDIC of ensuring capital adequacy within the banking system, ensuring profitability, ensuring access to finances are very important for the success of the administration and the economy, adding that the agency should work with the CBN to reduce the number of unbanked citizens.

Earlier in his remarks, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Umaru Ibrahim briefed the Minister on the achievements and challenges of the agency.