There are strong indications that Heritage Bank may, in the coming days, formally unveil a grand plan to synthesise its operations with that of Enterprise Bank in a move that will see the beginning of a total transformation of Heritage Bank into one of Nigeria’s formidable banking institutions.
Speaking at the board divestment closure ceremony organised by the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) in Lagos, recently, Ifie Sekibo, managing director, Heritage Bank, thanked the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), AMCON, Securities and Exchange Commission and former management of the bridge banks for making the process of AMCON divestment transparent.
With the AMCON divestment closure signalling final disengagement of the corporation from Enterprise Bank, Heritage Bank now had added impetus to roll out a more robust plan that would affirm its commitment to the promise of creating and preserving wealth across generations through highly personalised banking service, Sekibo.
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“We promise to make the bank more successful. We will create more value and improve on what has been done at Enterprise Bank. One year from now, all stakeholders will see reasons to appreciate the sale of the bank to Heritage Bank,” Sekibo said.
Ahmed Kuru, outgoing managing director/CEO of Enterprise Bank, expressed satisfaction over Heritage Bank’s emergence as the preferred bidder for the bridge bank, saying with Heritage Bank’s takeover of Enterprise Bank, “the level of damage will be minimised compared to if AMCON’s shares in the bank (Enterprise) had been acquired by a larger bank.”
Kola Belgore, chairman, AMCON, said the bridged banks had been restored to financial solvency, stating that Mainstreet Bank’s profit at the end of December 2014 stood at N13 billion while Enterprise Bank recorded a profit of N3 billion.
Mustafa Chike-Obi, managing director, AMCON, said the corporation’s divestment from the bridge banks was in line with the CBN’s regulation to leave banks in the hands of public hands, noting that Keystone Bank, the only remaining bridged bank, would be sold after the elections.
AMCON had, in the last quarter of 2014, announced both Heritage Bank and Skye Bank as the preferred bidders for Enterprise Bank and Mainstreet Bank, respectively. Both banks had since completed the payments for the 100 percent shares of the two acquired banks, and are currently conducting a process for seamless integration.
