$115m cash deposit scam: Fidelity Bank appoints Balarabe Ag MD/CEO, sacks Okonkwo

Fidelity Bank on Monday night announced the appointment of Alhaji Mohammed Lawal Balarabe as its Acting Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer.

This followed what it described as the absence from office of its MD/CEO, Nnamdi Okonkwo.

Mohammed Lawal Balarabe, Acting MD/CEO, Fidelity Bank

Okonkwo has been in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission since Monday last week.

He was accused of having been involved in a fraudulent transaction with a former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke.

He was said to have accepted $115 million cash deposit from firms mentioned to him by Alison-Madueke into Fidelity Bank Plc and also handled $26 million cash on behalf of the former Minister.

The money was said to have been deployed for the 2015 general election, with key staff of the Independent National Electoral Commission fingered as beneficiaries.

With his week-long absence, the management of the Bank was said to have opted to replace Okonkwo with Balarabe, who, until his appointment, was the Executive Director, North of Fidelity Bank Plc.

The appointment is with immediate effect and the Bank has said Balarabe’s confirmation would be subject to the approval of regulatory authorities, an indication that Okonkwo would not return to his seat as MD/CEO.

A statement by the Bank on Monday read: “In the absence of the Managing Director/Chief Executive, Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo, the Board of Directors of Fidelity Bank Plc has appointed the Executive Director, North, Alhaji Mohammed Lawal Balarabe, as the Acting Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Fidelity Bank Plc. with immediate effect subject to regulatory approval.

“The Bank reassures all its stakeholders including over 400,000 shareholders of its continued seamless services.”

A dealing member of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) since 1992, Alhaji Balarabe was an Executive Director with the former Oceanic Bank Plc.

He was also a General Manager in United Bank for Africa (UBA) and had been the General Manager and Chief Executive of Newdevco Finance Services Company Limited.

He has over 24 years banking experience across business portfolios in banking.

He was appointed to the Board of Fidelity Bank Plc in April, 2012.

According to the audited 2015 full year results of the bank, its gross earnings grew from N136.9 billion in 2014 to N146.9 billion in 2015. Profit before tax (PBT) declined by 9.6 per cent to N14.0 billion from N15.5 billion in 2014, while profit after tax (PAT) settled at N13.9 billion compared with N13.8 billion the previous year.

The directors, therefore, recommended a dividend of N4.6 billion, thus maintaining a tradition of consistent dividend pay-out for the past six years.

Total equity increased by 6.0 per cent to N183.5 billion from N173.1 billion in 2014 full year, net operating income stood at N83.9 billion, a moderate 12.5 per cent rise from N74.6 billion in 2014 full year, growing the major income lines across the quarters.

Assessing the performance of the bank, analysts at Renaissance Capital said Fidelity’s numbers had shown significant resilience versus its tier two peers, most of which had announced profit warnings for 2015.