E-Financial
Court Orders EFCC to Release of Ayeni, Ex-Skye Bank Chairman
Justice Yusuf Halilu of an Abuja High Court on Tuesday ordered the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to immediately release detained Tunde Ayeni, former chairman of Skye bank, from its custody.
Justice Halilu gave the order shortly after the Court set aside an earlier order it granted the EFCC to detain Ayeni for 14 days.
Delivering ruling in an enforcement of fundamental right suit filed by Ayeni, the court held that the continued detention of the former Skye Bank Chairman was illegal because the Commission had surpressed facts which misled the Court into granting its application for the detention of the plaintiff in the first place.
The anti-graft agency had last week approached the Court through an ex-parte application seeking a 14 day remand order of Ayeni.
The Commission had premised the request on a need to investigate a petition submitted by the Office of the Vice President in respect of his alleged roles as the Chairman of the defunct Skye Bank.
The court then granted the said ex-parte application.
Ayeni had however approached the Court to challenge the order as well as asking the Court to set aside the said remand order.
Ahmed Raji SAN, his lawyer, submitted that the application was challenging the jurisdiction of the court and the action of the Commission.
According to Raji, there is a pending suit before the Federal High Court against the applicant on the same subject matter and that the trial judge at the Federal High Court, Justice Nnamdi Dimgba, had in the particular case admitted him to bail.
He added that the bail condition had since been perfected.
Raji added that the detention of the applicant was a breach of his fundamental human right as he went to the Commission by himself on invitation.
He further submitted that the anti-graft agency purpotedly admitted the applicant to administrative bail on a non -realizable terms, which amounts to “giving bail with one hand , and collecting it back with the other hand”.
Raji argued, that the subject matter in which the applicant was detained centers around Skye bank issue which is already before the Federal High Court.
He however prayed the court to set aside the remand order and release the applicant.
Responding, EFCC’s counsel, A.I Audu opposed the application on the grounds that the subject matter of which the applicant was being detained was fresh and quite different from that of the matter before the Federal High Court.
He added that asides the petition submitted by the Office of the Vice President, the acting Chairman of the Commission also received a petition against the applicant from a Non Governmental Organisation .
He however added that the applicant was invited based on the petition that he received about N8bn from CBN to buy over Union Homes.
Audu further submitted that the applicant had been giving useful information to the Commission but fell ill along the way and he was consequently taken to the hospital.
According to him, it was the illness of the applicant that prompted the Commission to seek for an order to further remand him to complete the investigation.
Replying on point of law, Raji countered the respondent’s submission, stating that the petition which the respondent relied on to detain the applicant was dated 2015.
He further submitted that the amount in question was a loan , which the applicant was already servicing. He however queried which law of the land made accessing a loan a crime.
After listening to the submissions of counsel, Justice Halilu said that it was clear that the respondent surpressed fact when it came to ask for a remand order.
He noted that the respondent did not attach the fresh petition it claimed was written against the applicant, but rather attached a petition sent from the Office of the Vice President .
He also noted that the respondent did not inform the court that the Commission had granted the applicant an administrative bail and also that the applicant also standing trial before the Federal High Court had since been admitted to bail.
Justice Halilu held that the Court was not aware of all the facts presented by the applicant and which the respondent could not deny.
“Having considered all the facts before the court , it is clear that the respondent surpressed facts to mislead the court. If indeed there is a fresh petition against the applicant, and a pending matter is before the Federal High Court, the respondent need not a remand order, but to apply to amend the charge in which it is prosecuting the applicant.
“By coming for a remand order , the respondent had come to tamper with the sacred right of the applicant, which he enjoys. I wonder why the respondent did not attach the fresh petition it claimed it recieved. What I have before me is a petition written by the Office of the Vice President”.
Renaissance Capital Africa (Rencap) has named Zenith Bank Plc its top conviction pick among Nigerian banks, ahead of GTCO and AccessCorp, in a fresh research report highlighting the lender’s robust balance sheet and dividend potential despite sector headwinds.
Zenith Bank
The comprehensive review of the Nigerian banking industry notes that Zenith’s current market valuation lags its improving fundamentals, even as the NGX Banking Index posts strong gains recently.
Rencap upgraded Zenith from HOLD to BUY, lifting its target price by 96 per cent based on a lower risk-free rate from falling government bond yields, refined beta estimates, and expectations of cleaner assets post-forybearance resolutions.
Balance Sheet Strength Drives Outlook
Analysts project challenges to earnings growth from anticipated Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) rate cuts but foresee higher dividend payouts from resolved forbearance and single obligor loan (SOL) exposures alongside rising cash profits.
“Although we expect banks to face challenges in growing earnings… the balance sheet clean-up… will support higher dividend payouts relative to prior years,” the report states, ranking Zenith first, followed by GTCO and AccessCorp.
Key positives include loan write-offs that bolstered asset quality, enabling sustainable growth amid financial system reforms.
Dividend Recovery in Focus
Sector profitability from 2023-2024 was inflated by unrealised foreign exchange gains, which regulations barred from cash dividends, capping payouts despite headline profits.
Zenith historically led payout ratios in 2021-2022 via strong cash generation and capital discipline; Rencap expects a rebound as pressures ease, attracting income-focused investors.
Tier-1 Leadership Reinforced
Zenith Bank recently topped Nigeria’s tier-1 capital rankings for the 16th straight year, per The Banker magazine (Financial Times), affirming its resilience and positioning for long-term value creation.
CBN
- Access Bank Plc
- Fidelity Bank Plc
- First Bank of Nigeria Ltd
- Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank)
- United Bank for Africa (UBA)
- Zenith Bank Plc
- FCMB (First City Monument Bank) – currently pushing to raise additional capital to secure its international licence.
- Wema Bank
- Standard Chartered Bank (Nigeria)
- Citibank Nigeria
- Stanbic IBTC Bank
- Sterling Bank
- Globus Bank
- Premium Trust Bank
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has revised the minimum capital applicable to all categories of regulated capital market entities after 10 years.
The minimum capital review, according to the SEC, is informed by the need to strengthen market resilience, enhance investor protection, align capital adequacy with the evolving risk profile of market activities, and ensure that regulated entities possess sufficient financial capacity to discharge their obligations in a sustainable manner.
“The revised Minimum Capital framework seeks to: enhance the financial soundness and operational resilience of market operators; align capital requirements with the scope, complexity, and risk exposure of regulated activities; promote market stability and systemic risk mitigation; and support innovation and orderly development of new market segments, including digital assets and commodities markets,” SEC said in a January 16 circular to market operators.
The SEC circular was sent to all entities regulated by the Commission, including but not limited to core and non-core capital market operators; market infrastructure institutions; capital market consultants; financial technology (FinTech) operators; Virtual Asset Service Providers (VASPs); and Commodity market intermediaries.
All affected entities are required to comply with the revised Minimum Capital Requirements on or before June 30, 2027, the circular said.
“Entities that fail to meet the prescribed requirements within the stipulated timeline shall be subject to appropriate regulatory sanctions, including suspension or withdrawal of registration, as may be determined by the Commission,” SEC said.
Tier-1 Portfolio Managers (Full Scope) involved in the management of Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) and Alternative Investment Funds (Private Equity, Venture Capital, Infrastructure Funds etc) above N20 billion Net Asset Value (NAV), or discretionary and Non-Discretionary Private Portfolio Management Services above N20 billion Assets under Management (AuM), or exposure to foreign instruments up to 40 percent of the NAV are now required to have a minimum capital of N5 billion as against N150 million.
“Any Fund and Portfolio Manager with NAV/AuM of more than N100billion should have a minimum of 10 percent of the NAV/AuM as capital,” SEC added.
For the Tier-2 fund/portfolio managers (Limited Scope) who are in the business of management of Collective Investment Schemes with limited pooled fund creation of not more than 10 times the required capital (N20 billion) on Net Asset Value (NAV), or discretionary and non-discretionary private portfolio management services of not more than N20 billion, or those exposure to foreign instruments of not more than 20 percent of the NAV, now require N2 billion as minimum capital as against low of N150 million.
Likewise, broker-dealers whose services include: client execution, proprietary trading, margin/securities lending and advisory services no longer require N300 million minimum capital to operate but N2 billion.
The SEC said the minimum capital review from 2015 low is in line with its mandate under the Investments and Securities Act 2025 to regulate and develop the Nigerian capital market.
Also, Tier 1 issuing houses who do non-interest finance services, advisory & arrangement services but no underwriting now require N2 billion as against N200 million; while Tier 2 –issuing houses with underwriting and offers a ‘one-stop-shop’ for issuers, provides underwriting services, and renders advisory and product development services require N7 billion minimum capital for this business as against N200 million.
Also, the minimum capital requirement for brokers (client execution only) has been jacked up from N200 million to N600 million, while that of dealers (proprietary trading only) has been moved from N100 million to N1 billion.
Broker-Dealers’ (client execution, proprietary trading, margin/securities lending and advisory services) has been raised from N300 million to N2 billion, while Sub-Brokers’ (Digital) from N10million to N100million; Sub-Broker (Corporate) has been increased from N10million to N50 million. Also, sub-brokers’ (Individual) now need N10 million minimum capital for the business as against N2 million while inter-dealer brokers require N2 billion as against N50 million.
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