E-Financial
CBN’s Special Investigator, Jim Obazee Accuses Emefiele of Using Proxies to Buy Banks
Jim Obazee, the special investigator appointed by President Bola to investigate the activities of former Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, has revealed in his report that the former apex bank chief used proxies to acquire some banks in the country.
Late Alhaji Ismaila Isa Funtua, an ally of former President Muhammadu Buhari, was also fingered alongside Emefiele in the acquisition of Keystone Bank and Polaris Bank.
According to Punch, this is coming on the heels of findings by the investigator that Emefiele illegally lodged billions of naira in foreign currencies in no fewer than 593 bank accounts in the United States, United Kingdom, and China without the approval of the apex bank’s board of directors and the CBN Investment Committee.
Obazee found out that the ex-CBN governor lodged £543,482,213 in fixed deposits in UK banks alone without authorisation. Emefiele, who is currently in the Kuje Custodial Centre, is being prosecuted for N1.2bn procurement fraud.
Obazee, who was appointed special investigator in July, submitted his final report tagged, ‘Report of the Special Investigation on CBN and Related Entities (Chargeable offences)’ to the President on Wednesday. He had earlier submitted an interim report on the probe of the CBN and related entities on December 9.
In his letters to the President, Obazee said he had completed his investigation into the illegal acquisition of Union Bank by Titan Banka nd was on the verge of recovering the two banks for the Federal Government.
He stated in his letter to the President, “When we carried out the investigation, we discovered that some persons were used as proxies by Mr Godwin Emefiele to set up Titan Trust Bank and acquire Union Bank therefrom, all from ill-gotten wealth.
“We were able to secure some documents and investigation reports will lead to the forfeiture of the two banks to the Federal Government. We have completed our investigation on this acquisition and have also held meetings with the relevant parties except for Mr Cornelis Vink, who is currently hospitalised in Switzerland.
“Otherwise, we are on the verge of recovering these two banks for the Federal Government.”
During the probe into the UBN acquisition supervised by the Emefiele-led CBN, Obazee explained that he requested the apex bank to furnish him with the details of the deal.
Findings indicate Titan Trust Bank sought the CBN’s no-objection to its proposed consolidation with UBN, excluding its United Kingdom operations via a letter dated October 25, 2021.
In the letter, TTB stated that the consolidation was being contemplated in four phases via acquisition of 91.5 per cent of the issued shares of UBN; mandatory tender offer for the remaining UBN shares; buyout of any share that were not voluntarily sold to TTB on the MTO; and merger of TTB and UBN with UBN as the surviving entity.
The TTB letter also stated that the consolidation was to be funded via a combination of debt and equity. The CBN in a letter dated March 9, 2022 granted no-objection to TTB’s requests to obtain a $300m facility from Afrexim Bank as well as capital injection of $175m from two existing shareholders of TTB, Luxis International DMCC and Magna International DMCC.
The TTB, via a letter dated June 3, 2022, informed the CBN that it made the payment of the purchase consideration to the selling shareholders on June 1, 2022, and thus completed the acquisition of 93.41 per cent of the issued shares of UBN.
According to the investigator, the TTB sought approval for the mandatory takeover of the remaining 6.59 per cent of UBN shares vide a letter dated October 14, 2022.
The MTO was reportedly triggered by the successful acquisition of 93.41 per cent of the UBN shares and TTB was granted a no-objection to acquire the remaining 6.59 per cent shares through a letter dated October 24, 2022.
On November 2, 2022, the TTB officially launched the MTO, offering to acquire the remaining shares and the MTO concluded with the TTB purchasing an additional 0.64 per cent of the issued shares of UBN, thus bringing its total shareholding to 94.05 per cent.
To approve a scheme arrangement between itself and the holders of the balance of 5.95 per cent shares not yet bought by the TTB following an order of the Federal High Court, the UBN convened a meeting on June 13, 2023. This was expected to result in the transfer of the outstanding UBN shares to TTB.
The investigation report noted, “The process to acquire the remainder of 5.95 per cent of the issued share capital of UBN by TTB is ongoing through a court-ordered scheme of arrangement between itself and the holders of the balance of 5.95 per cent.
“TTB stated that its ultimate objective is to acquire 100 per cent of the total outstanding shares of UBN.” Further investigation showed that TTB is owned by Luxis International DMCC and Magna International DMCC, said to be based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
The two firms were said to be owned by Vink Corporation Middle East FZC, which is controlled by Cornelis Vink. However, efforts to verify the corporate status of Luxis and Magna in Dubai failed as they did not have a physical presence in the Arab country as claimed.
“This contravenes Section 3(5) of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act, 2020. Accordingly, they are not supposed to be allowed to operate or acquire a bank in Nigeria,” the report declared.
It stated, “The special investigator probed the activities of the TTB and discovered that there is a mysterious shareholder who has given interest-free long-term loan to (with no fixed repayment schedule) to the entities mentioned above (Luxis International DMCC and Magna International DMCC). This mysterious shareholder is believed to be Mr Godwin Emefiele.
“The special investigator requested the supposed owner of TTB and ultimate acquirer of Union Bank of Nigeria, Mr Cornelis Vink, to submit proof of funds, internationally verifiable bank statements (from incorporation of the entities to date), and the shareholder that gave interest-free loans to the two entities separately, names, nationality, source of fund, proof of fund, bank statements) as well as relationship of the entities with Mr Andrew Ojei, Jerome Shogbon, Rahul Savara, Winston Odeh, Adaeze Udensi, Ekene Louis, Godwin Emefiele, Macombe Omoile, Tunde Lemo, Mudassir Amry, Faruk Gumel, Oluremi Oni, and Vink Corporation Middle East FCZ together with the details of the shareholder that also gave Vink Corporation interest-free loan and your good self.
“A letter came from Union Bank of Nigeria claiming he is sick and can only come to meet with the special investigator or submit the documents requested when he gets well by the end of September 2023. As of today, December 20, 2023, we are yet to hear from him nor receive any of the requested documents.
“We are informed that they want to seek a political solution. The special investigator is of the view that the TTB and UBN be recovered by the Federal Government, strengthened and sold in the nearest future.
“A meeting was initially scheduled for December 5, 2023, with the Board of Directors of the two banks by the CBN Deputy Governor for Financial System Stability to close out discussions on this matter. The meeting has been postponed.”
On the alleged acquisition of Keystone by Emefiele through proxies, the investigator explained that sometime in 2017, the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria moved N20bn to Heritage Bank and on the back of that, the bank granted N25bn loan to the promoters of Isa Funtua/Emefiele Group’s acquisition vehicle to buy Keystone Bank and the loan was further backed by the shares of the bank.
Upon acquisition, Keystone reportedly returned the N20bn to Heritage Bank as placement and Heritage thereafter repaid AMCON from the cash flow so created.
The report read in part, “When the loan granted by Heritage Bank to Isa Funtua/Emefiele’s acquisition vehicles matured with outstanding balance, the MD of Heritage Bank, which was then in serious liquidity crisis, called for repayment. Unfortunately for the shareholders of the bank, the Funtua/Emefiele group could not repay.
“Consequently, the MD of Heritage Bank got his lawyers to write to the bank on two occasions threatening to take over Keystone Bank based on the shares they had pledged as security.
“After much pressure from him, Keystone Bank created internal loans of about N50bn between June and October 2019 and moved the proceeds to repay Heritage Bank on behalf of the shareholders.
“Before this, Godwin Emefiele as governor of the central bank had mounted pressure on the bank for these loans to be created within Keystone Bank on behalf of their group.
“However, the MD of the bank at that time resigned due to the consistent pressure from him and the shareholders to comply. The next in command, the deputy managing director, who subsequently became the acting MD, also resigned within three months for the same reason.
“Thereafter, an executive director, who then became the acting MD, took his vacation to avoid pressure for the approval of the loans. Unfortunately, the GM, Risk Management (Mr Tijjani Aliyu) and GM, Corporate Banking (Mr Niran Olayinka) approved the loans (about N50bn) while he was away and moved the proceeds to Heritage Bank for the repayment of the shareholders’ loans. The above loans, which are not being repaid currently, have total outstanding balance in excess of N64bn.”
The investigation also found that the credit approval memoranda were passed by the two GMs to the bank’s chairman, Alhaji Umaru Modibbo, who gave the final approval for disbursement, adding that the process bypassed the Management Credit Committee, Board Credit Committee and full board before disbursement.
“As a reward, the two GMs were immediately appointed executive directors, while one of them became the MD over the acting MD, who used to supervise him. The internal loans so created are not being serviced and have gone bad,” Obazee submitted.
The investigator informed the President that he had commenced the interrogation of the AMCON managing director on the acquisition of both Polaris and Keystone banks besides Arik Air, Aero Contractors and financial reporting by AMCON.
The AMCON MD was said to have told the investigator that “the N898bn liquidity support into Polaris Bank is not part of the SPA, which it should” and that “the N50bn paid for the transaction by the preferred bidder is not received by AMCON.”
Obazee said a preliminary review of the case showed that “Keystone was acquired for free as did Polaris Bank and the special investigator should liaise with the CBN to recover these two banks to the Federal Government of Nigeria.”
Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has imposed a three per cent surcharge on Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) over delays in the remittance of Customs revenue by designated banks.
The development was disclosed by Abdullahi Maiwada, national public relations officer of the Service, in a statement titled “Nigeria Customs Service Commences Enforcement of Penalties Against Designated Banks for Delayed Remittance of Customs Revenue.”
The agency stated that delays in remitting collected Customs revenue constitute a breach of remittance obligations and negatively impact the efficiency, transparency and integrity of government revenue administration.
Maiwada explained that any Designated Bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed period will be liable to penalty interest, adding that affected banks will receive formal notifications detailing the delayed amount, applicable penalty and the timeline for settlement.
“The NCS has noted instances of delayed remittance of Customs revenue by some Designated Banks following reconciliation of collections processed through the B’Odogwu platform. Such delays constitute a breach of remittance obligations and negatively impact the efficiency, transparency and integrity of government revenue administration.
“In line with the provisions of the Service Level Agreement (SLA) executed between the Nigeria Customs Service and Designated Banks, the Service hereby notifies stakeholders of the commencement of enforcement actions against banks found to be in default of agreed remittance timelines.
“Accordingly, any Designated Bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed period shall be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the duration of the delay. Affected banks will receive formal notifications indicating the delayed amount, applicable penalty and the timeline for settlement.”
Maiwada further advised Designated Banks to strengthen their internal controls, ensure strict adherence to remittance timelines and comply fully with the provisions of the SLA.
He reiterated that the Service remains committed to enforcing accountability, safeguarding government revenue and promoting a transparent and predictable financial system in support of national economic development.
“The Service further notes that persistent or repeated non-compliance with the terms of the SLA may attract additional sanctions, including regulatory and administrative measures, as provided under the Agreement and relevant laws guiding Customs revenue collection.
“The NCS reiterates that prompt, accurate and complete remittance of Customs revenue is a fundamental obligation of Designated Banks. Any payment of collected revenue into unauthorised accounts, whether deliberate or erroneous, will be treated as a serious violation and addressed in accordance with the SLA and applicable legal frameworks.
“Designated Banks are therefore advised to strengthen internal controls, ensure strict adherence to remittance timelines and comply fully with the provisions of the SLA. The Service remains committed to enforcing accountability, safeguarding government revenue and promoting a transparent and predictable financial system in support of national economic development,” he added.
The World Bank is set to approve a $500m loan to Nigeria on Friday (today) as part of efforts to expand access to finance for micro, small and medium enterprises across the country, according to Punch.
The proposed facility, titled the Fostering Inclusive Finance for MSMEs in Nigeria (FINCLUDE) Project, aims to mobilise private capital and promote innovative financial products for small businesses, according to information obtained from the World Bank.
Negotiations on the loan are ongoing, and approval by the World Bank Group’s board is expected on Friday.
The approval, expected on December 19, 2025, will see the World Bank commit $500m to the project out of an estimated total cost of $2.39bn.
Of the World Bank financing, $400m will be provided by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, while $100m will come from the International Development Association.
The Federal Government will be the borrower under the arrangement, with the Development Bank of Nigeria serving as the implementing agency with overall responsibility for managing the funds.
The remaining $1.89bn required for the project is expected to be provided by commercial lenders as unguaranteed financing.
According to the World Bank, the FINCLUDE project will leverage the platforms of the Development Bank of Nigeria and its subsidiary, Impact Credit Guarantee Limited, to deepen credit access for MSMEs.
“The proposed FINCLUDE Project leverages the platforms of the Development Bank of Nigeria and its subsidiary, the Impact Credit Guarantee Limited, to drive inclusive MSME finance,” a document from the World Bank read.
“Through these catalytic institutions, the project will deploy a package of complementary, inclusive, and innovative instruments tailored to the diverse needs of MSMEs in Nigeria.”
The World Bank described DBN as “a partner well known to the World Bank with high implementation capacity and a proven track record in designing and executing complex, innovative projects,” noting that its role would be central to the success of the intervention.
The project is structured around three main components. These include the provision of inclusive and innovative MSME finance products, the de-risking and mobilisation of private capital through partial credit guarantees, and technical assistance aimed at modernising and digitising Nigeria’s MSME finance ecosystem.
Under the first component, the World Bank said the project would provide Tier 2 subordinated capital to eligible financial institutions and support the establishment of an MSME investment fund to deliver equity and long-term debt financing to small businesses.
The bank said this approach would help “crowd-in private capital, test market innovations and promote financial sustainability” within the MSME segment.
Also, the project will offer targeted technical assistance to strengthen the capacity of financial institutions, improve regulatory oversight and modernise the MSME finance value chain linking DBN, lenders and entrepreneurs.
In its appraisal report, the World Bank highlighted Nigeria’s ongoing economic reforms, describing the country as being “in a critical transition.”
It noted that the removal of fuel and foreign exchange subsidies, alongside the unification of exchange rates, had begun to stabilise the economy and restore investor confidence.
“These reforms have improved fiscal space, enhanced FX liquidity, and eased inflation to 18 per cent as of September 2025,” the report stated, adding that growth prospects were strengthening, with the International Monetary Fund projecting 3.9 per cent real GDP growth in 2025.
Despite these improvements, the World Bank warned that access to finance remained uneven, particularly for MSMEs, women and the agriculture sector.
It noted that agriculture accounted for just over five per cent of total bank credit in 2024, while high interest rates and shallow credit penetration continued to constrain lending to smaller enterprises.
Fidelity Bank Plc has brought relief to indigent patients at the Enugu State University Teaching Hospital (ESUTH) Parklane, by offsetting medical bills and providing financial support to children battling chronic health conditions alongside donations of ante-natal kits to pregnant women.
L-R: Public Relations Officer, Enugu State University Teaching Hospital (ESUTH), Amarachi Amusi; Team Member, Optimizers Inductees Class of 2025, Precious Uchechi-Uneke; Class Governor, Optimizers Inductees Class of 2025, Chinedu Hilary-Elijah (both of Fidelity Bank Plc); Matron, Children’s Ward ESUTH, Esther Nnaji; and Team Lead, Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), Fidelity Bank Plc, Victoria Abuka; during the Fidelity Helping Hands Program (FHHP) outreach to ESUTH recently.
The intervention, which was carried out under the bank’s Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiative known as Fidelity Helping Hands Programme (FHHP), was funded and executed by newly inducted employees of the bank, the Optimizers Inductees Class, as their community impact project, with matching financial support from the bank.
Commenting on the outreach, Divisional Head, Brand and Communications Division, Fidelity Bank Plc, Dr Meksley Nwagboh, highlighted that the initiative underscores the bank’s commitment to improving lives through targeted social interventions across its four CSR pillars.
“This project reflects the spirit of who we are as a bank. Beyond providing financial services, we are committed to touching lives within the communities where we operate. Today, we are donating ante-natal kits to pregnant women and also supporting indigent patients who have remained in the hospital due to unpaid bills. Some of the children also require long-term medical care, so we have given additional financial support to aid their continued treatment,” Dr Nwagboh said.
Whilst wishing the beneficiaries quick recovery and good health, Nwagboh described the intervention as both significant and timely, enabling many families to reunite and celebrate the festive season without the burden of outstanding hospital debts.
Receiving the donation, the Chief Matron of the Children’s Ward, Esther Nnaji, commended Fidelity Bank for the timely intervention, describing it as a lifeline for families grappling with rising healthcare costs.
“There are so many families here in desperate need. Some of the children are battling cancer, sickle cell disease and other chronic conditions. Fidelity Bank’s support will go a long way in relieving their pain. Because of what you have done, some of these children will now be able to see their siblings again,” she said.
Several beneficiaries expressed deep gratitude to Fidelity Bank for easing their financial burdens. Mrs. Adaeze Ilo, whose baby’s bill was cleared, said the support came at a moment of despair.
“After spending months in the hospital, we had no idea how to raise the money,” she said. “Fidelity Bank came through for us when we needed it the most. We are deeply grateful.”
Another relieved parent, Jane Anthony, whose son’s bill was cleared, said her family had already accepted that they would spend Christmas in the hospital.
“God used Fidelity Bank to send us home to enjoy Christmas. My heart is full.” she said.
The recent outreach to Enugu State University Teaching Hospital further highlights Fidelity Bank’s continued commitment to supporting vulnerable groups and strengthening community well-being across Nigeria through community-driven CSR efforts.
Ranked among the best banks in Nigeria, Fidelity Bank Plc is a full-fledged Commercial Deposit Money Bank serving over 9.1 million customers through digital banking channels, its 255 business offices in Nigeria and United Kingdom subsidiary, FidBank UK Limited.
The Bank is a recipient of multiple local and international Awards, including the 2024 Excellence in Digital Transformation & MSME Banking Award by BusinessDay Banks and Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards; the 2024 Most Innovative Mobile Banking Application award for its Fidelity Mobile App by Global Business Outlook, and the 2024 Most Innovative Investment Banking Service Provider award by Global Brands Magazine. Additionally, the Bank was recognized as the Best Bank for SMEs in Nigeria by the Euromoney Awards for Excellence and as the Export Financing Bank of the Year by the BusinessDay Banks and Financial Institutions (BAFI) Awards.
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