Contrary to rumours circulating on social media, the Association of Corporate Communication and Marketing Professionals in Banks (ACAMB) has reassured Nigerians that no bank in the nation is in danger of closure due to recapitalisation requirements.
ACAMB President Mr Rasheed Bolarinwa and General Secretary Mr Jide Sipe jointly released a statement on Sunday that included the assurance. It followed an Instagram video that claimed the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) would close 12 banks by March 2026 for not having sufficient capital.
The video’s creator was accused by ACAMB of trying to incite panic and use false information for personal benefit, calling it alarmist and misleading.
According to ACAMB: “The content creator demonstrated a fundamental lack of understanding of banking recapitalisation, making several erroneous and misleading assertions that are easily disprovable by anyone with basic knowledge of the Nigerian banking sector.”
The recapitalisation effort is a proactive policy aimed at bolstering the banking system and advancing the Federal Government’s goal of creating a $1 trillion economy by 2030, the association clarified. It went on to say: “As repeatedly explained by the CBN, the recapitalisation exercise is a forward-looking, proactive policy designed to strengthen the banking system. It is not a crisis response, nor is it an indication of distress. Rather, it is a patriotic call for banks to scale up their capacity to drive economic growth and development.”
Nigerian banks are currently safe, sound, and adequately capitalised, with strong capital adequacy buffers that are sufficient to meet both customer obligations and regulatory requirements, ACAMB emphasised, in contrast to the false claims.
ACAMB further stated that rather than concentrating on total shareholder funds or other securities like bonds and preference shares, the recapitalisation initiative aims to strengthen core ownership capital, which includes share capital and share premium.
All banks submitted recapitalisation plans to the CBN in 2024, according to ACAMB, and these plans were examined and given the go-ahead for execution.
The statement went on to reveal: “All banks have a fair and realistic chance of meeting their recapitalisation targets, with more than one-third already having met theirs and most others at advanced stages of implementation. In its most recent assessment, the CBN publicly expressed satisfaction with the progress made and reaffirmed that banks are on track to meet the stipulated deadlines.”
FirstBank, United Bank for Africa (UBA), Fidelity Bank, and FCMB are international banks that have surpassed capital thresholds and are not at risk of undercapitalization, according to the statement, which also clarified specific claims made against particular banks. It also stated that Sterling Bank has finished important stages of recapitalisation, such as private placement and rights issues, while Citibank Nigeria and Standard Chartered Bank Nigeria are still robust subsidiaries of their international parents. The aforementioned institutions, including Polaris Bank, maintain their operational soundness and have well-defined recapitalisation pathways, BrandSpur banking and finance news desk reports.
The recapitalisation process: “is progressing in an orderly manner and in line with regulatory expectations,” according to CBN Governor Mr Olayemi Cardoso, who made this statement in November, ACAMB recalled.
Assuring stability and resilience, the association underlined that Nigeria’s 44 deposit-taking banks, operating under a variety of license categories, are still subject to stringent regulatory oversight.
Continuing, disseminating false information was denounced by the association, which called it “baseless and driven by mischief, ignorance, and reckless disregard for the economic consequences of misinformation.”
The body went on to say that it would alert law enforcement to such content, especially when it crosses the line into economic sabotage, false representation, and Cybercrime Act violations. Although it acknowledged the right to free speech, it emphasised that this right comes with obligations to be truthful, accurate, and equitable.
Futhering, the statement partly reads: “Accurate, responsible reporting is welcome and protected; however, deliberate misinformation or panic-inducing narratives around the banking sector will be reported to the appropriate authorities in the interest of financial stability and public trust.”
With assurances that the recapitalization process is intended to fortify the industry and provide long-term economic benefits, the association encouraged Nigerians to carry on with their banking operations with confidence.
