BANK CHAIRMAN IN $21M SCANDAL

Truly, the root of all evil is the love of money -says the Holy Scripture. That is the reason why a bank chairman who have amassed some level of wealth to still be involved in dubious and fraudulent banking transactions. This validates the saying that man is an insatiable animal that is why a whole chairman can condescend so low because of money. THE chairman of one of the three banks rescued by the suspended Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, has landed in police net over alleged involvement in in a $21 million Letter of Credit scam.

 The Special Fraud Unit (SFU) of the police investigating the matter had, last week, detained the chairman for three days after which he was released on administrative bail.

Details of the transaction indicated that the bank chairman had, sometime between June and September 2013, opened three Letters of Credit totalling $21 million in favour of a company named MBS Merchants Limited.

The details included LC No: UB/13/LC/056 with LC value of $10,500,000 confirmed by Duetche Bank, LC No: UB/13/LC/064 with total value of $15,305,500, confirmed by FBN of London  and another :LC Number UB/13/LC/068 with totl value of USD5, 282,000. The total money was put at $21, 067,500.

A report by the financial monitors, which was acted upon by the SFU, indicated that the bank chairman “used his influence to get the LCs opened without adherence to laid down rules and regulations of the bank.

“Not only did he use his position to influence the opening of the LCs, he also flagrantly refused to ensure  adequate and sufficient cash collateral at the maturity of the LCs. This was in spite of several demands from the management.”

It was learnt that after he had spent three days at SFU in Lagos, he was granted administrative bail. He was also said to have agreed to repay the sum of $21 million value of the Letters of Credit.

Another bank chieftain said to be playing strategic roles at the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON), was said to have been facing moral issues following complaints by financial managers and monitors to the authorities that he participated in the failure of another major bank.