NDIC pays N93.6bn to depositors as liquidation dividend

Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim, Managing Director, Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), has said that the agency has paid N93.64 billion liquidation dividend to 250,497 bank depositors as at 31 August.

Umaru made the fact known at a news conference to mark the 25th Anniversary of NDIC in Abuja on Thursday.

“The payment of liquidation dividends to the uninsured depositors of the closed Deposit Money Banks (DMB) was undertaken at different times in the last 25 years of NDIC engagement as a liquidator of banks in Nigeria.

“Accordingly, the cumulative sum of N93.64 billion was paid as liquidation dividend to 250, 497 depositors as at Aug. 31,” he said.

Ibrahim said NDIC had declared a dividend of 100 per cent of total deposits in respect of 14 closed banks as at December 2013.

He added that all depositors in those banks had fully recovered their deposits. “The sum of N1.72 million was declared as dividends to 699 creditors of nine banks.

“Out of that amount, the NDIC has paid the sum of N1,191.54 million to 424 creditors, who filed their claims as at 31 August.

“The corporation has paid liquidation dividend to 453 shareholders of Alpha, Pan African and Nigeria Merchant Bank which stood at N2 billion as at 31 August,” he said.

Umaru said the Corporation had developed a software, called ‘Financial Institution Liquidation Management Software (FILMS)’, to enhance liquidation process in the country.

He said NDIC paid N2.75 billion to over 80,059 verified depositors of 186 MFBs that were closed three years ago.

He said that N6.82 billion was also paid to 528,277 depositors of 48 banks in liquidation as at Aug. 31.

“The depositors of the 186 Micro Finance Banks (MFBs) that have been closed down are of two segments, the first payment has been made to over 50 per cent and the second set of payment is below 50 per cent.

“The process of paying the latest liquidated 83 MFBs is still on,” he said

He said the inability to locate some MFBs and Primary Mortgage Banks, whose licences were revoked, was one of the major challenges of the corporation in carrying out its liquidation obligations.

Others are legal and judicial process and inadequate public awareness.

“In spite of these challenges facing the corporation, the board, management and staff are determined to ensure that it achieves its broad mandate of protecting depositors and providing a stable financial system in Nigeria,” Umar said.