Everything seemed well on the 27th of April 2020 after FBN Holdings completed its Annual General Meeting held at the Oriental Hotel Lekki. Following the AGM, the bank recommended a dividend payment of N16.15 billion out of a profit after tax of N65.9 billion.
The bank also announced the appointment of Mr Seni Adetu, Mrs Julier Anammah and Mr Out Hughes as non-executive directors of the bank. It also re-elected Mr Oye Hassan Odukale, Dr Adesola Adeduntan and Otunba Mrs Debola Osibogun as directors of the bank.
Unbeknownst to investors and most shareholders of the bank, while everything appeared rosy at the AGM, factions in the bank led by Chairman Dr Oba Otudeko and Chairman of the First Bank Ibukun Awosika were hatching out a plan that will change the course of history for Nigeria’s oldest bank aged 127 years.
Olumuyiwa Olowogboyega
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The Central Bank of Nigeria has directed the Oba Otudeko owned Honeywell Flour Mills to repay a loan to First Bank within 48 hours, according to a memo seen by TechCabal.
In the letter seen by TechCabal dated April 26, 2021, the CBN stated, âConsequently, the company (Honeywell Flour Mills) is required to fully repay its obligations to the bank within 48 hours, failing which the CBN will take appropriate regulatory measures against the insider borrower and the bank.â
Insider lending is when a bank makes a loan to one or more of its own officers or directors.
Oba Otudeko serves as the chairman of FBN Holdings PLC, the holding company which owns First Bank. Otudeko also served as Chairman of First Bank until 2010 and is also the Chairman of the Honeywell Group.
Central Bank May Sanction Nigeria’s First Bank Over Appointment Of New CEO
The appointment of a new CEO, Shobo, to replace the former CEO, Dr Sola Adeduntan, had been disclosed by the bank in a statement made by the bank’s Chairman, Ibukun Awosika.
by Saharareporters, New York
Apr 29, 2021
The Central Bank of Nigeria and the First Bank of Nigeria Limited may be on a collision course after the apex bank issued the commercial bank a query over the removal of its Chief Executive Officer and appointment of a new one.
The CBN in a query, dated April 28 and obtained by SaharaReporters noted that the Board of Directors of First Bank of Nigeria Limited revealed that it had appointed Gbenga Shobo as its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer “without due consultation with the regulatory authorities, especially given the systemic importance” of the bank.
The Board of Directors of First Bank of Nigeria Limited has appointed Gbenga Shobo as its Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO).
The appointment was disclosed in a statement made by the bank’s Chairman, Ibukun Awosika on Wednesday, April 28, 2021.
Shobo will succeed Sola Adeduntan, who will be leaving the bank in accordance with the term limit for chief executives, after leading the bank since January 2016.
What they are saying
In her statement, Awosika said;
“We are proud to announce Gbenga Shobo as our new MD/CEO. His appointment has proven the resilience of our succession planning mechanisms and the value we place on our long-standing corporate governance practices, which underpin the institution’s enduring sustainability and 127-year legacy.
The Central Bank of Nigeria may reinstate ousted Dr Sola Adeduntan as MD/CEO of First Bank Ltd as the controversy surrounding his removal rages on.
Multiple sources with knowledge of the matter informed Nairametrics that the Godwin Emefiele led central bank is pressuring the bank behind the scenes to reinstate Adeduntan against the wishes of the Board of Directors of the bank. Another reliable source informed Nairametrics that the apex bank may issue a letter to First Bank Ltd., reinstating Adeduntan if the bank does not reverse his removal.
Nairametrics reported earlier that the Central Bank of Nigeria had issued the Board of First Bank Ltd, one of Nigeria’s oldest banks a query for the removal of its CEO citing failure of the bank to obtain its approval.