The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), the government-owned agency established in 2010 to stabilize and revitalize the Nigerian financial system, has repaid about N3.6 trillion to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) since its inception.

Managing Director and CEO of the corporation, Gbenga Alade, disclosed this at a media parley in Lagos.

Alade said that even though it has paid N1.7 trillion to purchase the toxic assets of banks, it has been able to repay about N3.6 trillion and is still owing about N3 trillion.

He said AMCON restructured the banks by offloading toxic assets from their books and injecting fresh funds, aligning with corporate insolvency restructuring principles.

According to him, with this mechanism, bank depositors retain their deposits because they have confidence in the financial system, assuring banks’ ability to honour their obligations, adding that AMCON then manages the acquired Eligible Bank Assets (EBAs) preparatory to their disposal.

The CEO noted that the law establishing AMCON upsets and reverses the contractual rights and securities law hierarchy by conferring priority to AMCON in disputes with bank debtors over collateral and contracts.

Alade also said, “As part of our recovery strategy, we have commissioned some foreign asset tracers who will help us locate where some of these obligors have hidden their assets across the globe.”

Speaking on the financial performance of the corporation since he assumed duties as the helmsman, he said the corporation recorded total revenue of 156.25 billion and total operating expenses of N29.04 billion, remarking that the total operating revenue/revenue ratio was 19 percent.

Alade said the projected total revenue for 2025 will be N215.15 billion, while projected total operating expenses will be N29.06 billion, with the total operating/revenue ratio expected to be in the region of 13.5 percent.

“It is important to stress that the corporation has done tremendously well, especially when compared to other notable government-owned Asset Management Corporations around the world.

“Based on the balance at purchase, AMCON outperformed other Asset Management Corporations all over the world by achieving over 87% in recoveries despite the unique challenges associated with debt recovery in Nigeria.

“The Malaysian Danaharta, which is adjudged one of the best performing Asset Management Corporation’s only achieved 58%. The Chinese Asset Management Corporation, despite its stricter laws, achieved just 33%. Only the Korean Asset Management Corporation (KAMCO) in South Korea has achieved more recoveries than AMCON, with about 100%. This was due to their brute force with which they chased the obligors.

“Despite KAMCO’s recovery records, the agency is still operational to date with slight realignments in its mandate. Other noted Asset Management Corporations that have transitioned into a perpetual institution of the various governments include China Asset Management Company, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) USA, and KFW Germany. So, gentlemen, without sounding immodest, AMCON has done well, and we will not relent until all the outstanding debts are fully realised,” Alade said.

He said the current EXCO of the corporation has engaged seasoned consultants to carry out a comprehensive audit review of all AMCON cases across the Courts – the Federal High Court (FHC), which is our Court of first instance, the Court of Appeal, and the Supreme Court.

He said the leadership of the judiciary at the three layers of the courts shares the pain of AMCON and deeply understands the challenge that the obligors pose to AMCON.

Consequently, all the courts have approved the New Practice Direction for AMCON debt recovery. In addition, the FHC has also created the Insolvency Units in the bid to fast-track all AMCON cases that are pending in different courts.

The CEO also noted that the corporation’s recovery efforts have been strongly supported by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu-GCFR, the judiciary, the Central Bank of Nigeria, the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Attorney General of the Federation, and Minister of Justice, the Board of Directors of AMCON, the EFCC, the Police, the ICPC, the National Assembly, the Media and a host of other sister agencies of government.

He said the corporation, “will continue to go about its recovery mandate with the fear of God, love of country, and complete adherence to the rule of law. Let me also alert you that, as we are tightening the noose through the Courts on the obligors and deploying our strategies, most of the debtors would want to leverage the media to misinform the public.

“Please note that most of them took the loans with no intention whatsoever to repay the debt. So, I beg you, no matter the skewed narration they peddle in the newsrooms, kindly take it with a pinch of salt, and touch base with us because we have the accurate records, which is evident in some of the landmark cases that we have won against many of the obligors.

“Yes, the wheel of justice grinds slowly sometimes, but with patience and dedication, we have continued to make progress. Our cases have also contributed to the development of jurisprudence in the country with the publication of the first set of the AMCON Legal Compendium – a compilation of AMCON cases at both the Federal High Court and the Court of Appeal.” (CHANNELS)