The Central Bank of Nigeria has released a new list clarifying banks’ levels of authorization. No fewer than 29 of them lack the authorization to operate offshore. Earlier in the year, the apex bank initiated a new round of recapitalization. The idea, CBN Gov. Olayemi Cardozo said, is to shore up the banks’ capital bases according to their authorization levels....CONTINUE READING THE ARTICLE FROM THE SOURCE
Commercial banks with a N200-billion recapitalized base can only operate in all states of Nigeria: no offshore operation. Those with a N50-billion recapitalized base can only operate in the regions.
According to the list the CBN just released, 29 banks, comprising the national and the regional authorization holders, fall in this category. Others include merchant banks and the non-interest banks.
Below is the list of banks the Central Bank of Nigeria doesn’t authorize for offshore Operations
National Banks
Citibank Nigeria Limited
Ecobank Nigeria Limited
Heritage Bank Plc
Globus Bank Limited
Keystone Bank Limited
Polaris Bank Limited
Stanbic IBTC Bank Limited
Standard Chartered Bank Limited
Sterling Bank Limited
Titan Trust Bank Limited
Union Bank of Nigeria Plc
Unity Bank Plc
Wema Bank Plc
Premium Trust Bank Limited
Optimus Bank Limited
Regional Banks
Providus Bank Limited
Parallex Bank Limited,
Suntrust Bank Nigeria Limited,
Signature Bank Limited.
The policy equally affects those in the non-interest banking sector with national authorisation and the merchant banking category.
These include:
Jaiz Bank Plc
Taj Bank Limited
Lotus Bank Limited
Alternative Bank Limited
Merchant Banks
Coronation Merchant Bank Limited
FBN Merchant Bank Limited
FSDH Merchant Bank Limited
Greenwich Merchant Bank Limited
Nova Merchant Bank Limited
Rand Merchant Bank Limited
Considering the list, only a handful of the first-tier banks have the international authorization. The CBN permits them to operate offshore.
International Banks
Access Bank Limited
Fidelity Bank Plc
First City Monument Bank Limited
First Bank Nigeria Limited
Guaranty Trust Bank Limited
United Bank of Africa Plc
Zenith Bank Plc