How Access Bank will meet CBN’s directive – Aig-Imoukhuede explains

The Chairman of Access Holdings Plc, Aigboje Aig-Imokhuede has stated that he is extremely confident that the bank would raise $300 million in capital for Access Bank, considering the bank’s strong market position and shareholders’ support.

He made the statement during an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on the side-line of Access Holdings’ second Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Lagos.

Recall that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on 29 March, gave a directive to commercial banks in Nigeria with international authorisation to shore up their capital base to N500 billion and national banks to N200 billion.

The recapitalisation exercise is expected to start from 1 April to 31 March 2026. As a result, the shareholders of Access Bank, at the AGM, backed the group’s plan to establish a capital raising programme of up to $1.5 billion.

Mr Aig-Imokhuede stated that Access Holdings had a great relationship with the capital market in Nigeria and internationally to be able to meet CBN 's directive.

He said: “It is not the first time CBN is coming up with such policy.

“Recall that in 2004 when CBN announced that all banks must recapitalise to the tune of N25 billion and Access Bank had about N3 billion of capital.

“Between 2004 and 2007, our team, when I was the CEO of the bank, raised two billion dollars of common equity capital.

“Therefore, in 2024 when Access Holdings is much older, wiser, stronger, larger and significantly respected by the capital market with over 800,000 shareholders, raising 300 million dollars in capital for Access Bank, its banking subsidiary is not really much of a challenge.

“We signalled to the market first that we will be doing a Right Issue, which means that we must carry everybody along, in spite of our large institutional shareholders.

“Nonetheless, we believe in ensuring that shareholders, either large or small, continue with us on our journey.

“They have always supported us when need be with good reasons, because they believe in the company and the performance that would be delivered subsequently to such capital raising exercise.

“What is on the mind of our shareholders now is recapitalisation and they are also concerned about how their company continues to deliver returns.”

Mr Aig-Imokhuede added that Access Bank endorses the CBN policy wholeheartedly.

BEB