Posted by The Champion on
CENTRAL BANK of Nigeria (CBN) has granted its Approval-in-Principle (AIP) to the Citizens Guardian Bank merger group involving Citizens International Bank, Guardian Express Bank and ACB International Bank.
CENTRAL BANK of Nigeria (CBN) has granted its Approval-in-Principle (AIP) to the Citizens Guardian Bank merger group involving Citizens International Bank, Guardian Express Bank and ACB International Bank.
The apex bank's approval was conveyed in a letter dated November 9, 2005 and signed by the Director of Banking Supervision, Mr. Godwin Aladejobi.
In the letter, the CBN stated "...we refer to your letter dated October 25, 2005... we write to convey our approval in principle for the proposed union between Citizens Bank, Guardian Express Bank and ACB International Bank on the basis of the documents submitted to the CBN."
Following the AIP, the three banks will now proceed to the final stage of the merger process, which involves court-ordered Extra-Ordinary General Meetings (EGMs) where shareholders are expected to give their final consent to the merger.
Prior to the Approval-in-Principle, the proposed new institution had secured CBN's pre-merger consent and is currently awaiting the approval of the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC).
Citizens Guardian Bank which kicks off January 2, 2006 will trade under the brand name "Citizens Bank" and will be led by tested professionals.
Professor Anya O. Anya, pioneer chief executive of the Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG) will be the chairman of the bank while Mr. Mike Chukwu, a tested banker will be the managing director.
Citizens Guardian Bank has a combined shareholders' fund of N27.5 billion, a total asset base of N87 billion, total deposits in excess of N60 billion and a network of 200 branches.