Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) Plc. and its Managing Director/Chief Executive Director, Segun Agbaje are in big trouble.
Report reaching us has it that GTBank might be probed over the N1.27 trillion intervention funds, following the ongoing investigation of the activities of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Sources said that GTBank’s MD/CEO, Segun Agbaje would be invited in an effort to ascertain any discrepancies around the management of intervention funds by deposit money banks.
Infact, we gathered that the Central Bank of Nigeria may be asked to withdraw its audited annual financial reports, which were recently released.
This is coming after a team investigating the apex bank discovered discrepancies and irregularities in the financial accounts.
According to report, the CBN in August released its financial accounts for the years 2016 to 2022 amid an ongoing probe of the financial services sector regulator by a Special Investigator appointed by President Bola Tinubu.
Recall that Tinubu on July 28 appointed a former Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria, Jim Obazee, as Special Investigator to probe the activities of the Central Bank of Nigeria under the suspended governor, Godwin Emefiele.
Tinubu had in a letter dated July 28, 2023, said; “In accordance with the fundamental objectives set forth in Section 15(5) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended), this administration is, today, continuing the fight against corruption by appointing you as a Special Investigator, to investigate the CBN and Related Entities. This appointment shall be with immediate effect and you are to report directly to my office.”
“The full terms of your engagement as Special Investigator shall be communicated to you in due course but require that you immediately take steps to ensure the strengthening and probity of key Government Business Entities, further block leakages in CBN and related GBEs and provide a comprehensive report on public wealth currently in the hands of corrupt individuals and establishments (whether private or public).”
“You are to investigate the CBN and related entities using a suitably experienced, competent and capable team and work with relevant security and anti-corruption agencies to deliver on this assignment. I shall expect a weekly briefing on the progress being made.”
However, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), George Akume, had said that the Federal Government will soon unveil the audit report of the probe of the CBN.
Accordin to him; “Most of these problems confronting us are due to bad governance. The present government has confronted and is confronting these challenges. When President Bola Tinubu came on board, he took a very sound decision at the CBN. That singular act led to a massive improvement in the capital market, as experts have told us, it is something that has never happened in the past 15 years.”
“We have a new team at the CBN and a special investigator has been in the CBN for some time now and his result will soon be released and Nigerians will know what really went wrong and what brought us to where we are today.”
Meanwhile, findings revealed that Obazee had submitted an interim report to the President’s office. Some of the officials said the preliminary report was submitted for necessary action by the President.
A top official said; “The CBN Special Investigator submitted a preliminary report to the President’s Office over a week ago. The investigation still continues but the preliminary report is meant to give the President an idea of what has been discovered so far.”
We gathered that the interim report was what gave birth to the change of leadership at the CBN. Sources said President Bola Tinubu and his team are currently reviewing the report with a view to taking an appropriate decision.
According to an insider, some top bank officials will be invited as the investigations proceed over undisbursed intervention funds.
Findings by our correspondent showed that a whopping sum of N1.27trillion intervention funds sit in GTCO.
For those who don’t know, the intervention funds cover lending facilities provided by the CBN through local banks, and the facilities include Accelerated Agriculture Development Scheme, Anchor Borrowers’ Programme, Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme, Healthcare Sector Intervention Facility, and Paddy Aggregation Scheme.
They also include Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprises Development Fund, Real Sector Support Facility, 100 for 100 Policy on Production and Productivity, Export Facilitation Initiative, and the Creative Industry Financing Initiative.
Findings showed that there was at least N530.07 billion worth of intervention funds in another bank. This included about N3.56 billion under the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme, N1.57 billion to facilitate the rapid rollout of agent networks across Nigeria supporting the expansion of a shared Agent Network, N58.84 billion under the salary bailout fund, N99.04 billion outstanding balance on the excess crude account loans, N9.34 billion for the Real Sector Support Facility, N1.14 billion for the Accelerated Agricultural Development Scheme.
It also included N955.61 million for the Creative Industry Financing Initiative, N8.62 billion for the Non-Oil Export Stimulation Facility, and N17.64 billion for the Health Sector Intervention Facility, among others.
We also learnt that at least N310.52 billion of the intervention funds sit in another bank. It included N80.65 billion state bailout fund, N190.06 billion Real Sector Support Facility – Differentiated Cash Reserves Requirement, N7.28 billion Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme, N2.5 billion Paddy Aggregation Scheme, and N6.36 billion 100 for 100 PPP.
The information further observed that about N288.42 billion. It included N23.54 billion Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme Loan, N1.86 billion Power & Aviation Intervention Fund, N125.14 billion salary bailout fund, N71.53 billion Excess Crude Loan Facility, N28.73 billion Real Sector Support Facility and N9.13 billion Non-Oil Export Stimulation Facility.
Sources told us that there was about N115.09 billion in GTBank and N25.16 billion in another popular bank.
It is interesting to know that as of October 2022, about N9 trillion had been released as intervention funds by the apex bank.
CBN said that about N3.7 trillion had been repaid by beneficiaries while over N5 trillion was not yet due for recovery.
GTBank leads other banks that have about N208.33billion undisbursed funds from the CBN for the Anchor Borrower Fund and the Commercial Agriculture Credit Scheme at little interest rates.
According to the first half financial statements released to the Nigerian Exchange Limited, Guaranty Trust Holding Company and others had N114.10 billion of the Anchor Borrowers Fund still in its coffers.
The Anchor Borrowers’ Programme was established by the CBN in line with its developmental function. It was launched by former President Muhammadu Buhari on November 17, 2015, to create a link between anchor companies involved in the processing and smallholder farmers of key agricultural commodities.
Be that as it may, according to GTBank’s financial reports it still had N75.35 billion of the Anchor Borrowers Fund as of June 2023 (December 2022: N78.42bn), which shows that only N3.06 billion had been disbursed in six months. The bank revealed that the tenor of the facility depends on the gestation period of the targeted commodity but will not exceed two years. The facility is disbursed at an all-inclusive interest rate of nine per cent.
For the CACS intervention fund, GTBank still had N3.29 billion (December 2022: N5.05 billion. The facility is for a period of seven years at two per cent annual cost to the company. The maximum interest rate to the borrowers under the scheme is nine per cent annually inclusive of all charges.
