ByAdemola Alawiye

Tuesday, 14 Dec 2010

The Chairman of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, Lagos State chapter, Mr. Bayo Olugbemi, has blamed the crisis in the Nigerian financial system in general on the lack of proper monitoring and regulation by the authorities.

Speaking in Lagos, after his re-election as the Chairman of the CIBN, Lagos State Chapter, Olugbemi said, improper regulation was a major factor that led to the market and banking crises that rocked the financial sector two years ago.

He added that banks and capital market operators abandoned professionalism and adopted entrepreneurship approach, a factor which led to the crisis that affected the entire financial system, even the capital market.

He, however, said that activities had improved over the years and things were improving for the better.

Olugbemi said, “We have learnt within the last two years to do things right in the financial sector. Today, financial institutions are still making money, depending on their investment strategy.”

He urged stakeholders in the money and capital market to address the anomalies in the market and help revive the fortune of the markets.

Olugbemi, who was elected for the second term, stressed the determination of the CIBN to re-orientate microfinance banks operations in the country to strictly adhere to the principles of microfinance banking, focusing on small scale business owners and low-income individual.

According to him, the activities of Primary Mortgage Institutions and MFBs are major challenges confronting the institute in its aim of ensuring professionalism in the banking sector.

He, however, noted that over the years, the institute had impacted positively on the activities of operators in these sectors.

Olugbemi said, “We intend to concentrate majority of our efforts in the next two years to training a vast majority of operators in these sectors. On assumption of office during my first tenure, I set a 13-point agenda, out of which we were able to achieve nine.”

He stated that he would focus on the achievement of the remaining four agenda, which included the erection of a befitting secretariat for the Lagos state chapter.

He noted that the institute would soon begin the implementation of the Act which forbade non-members of the CIBN from holding certain positions in banks in the country.

He stated that the CIBN was about implementing the Act before the banking crises unfolded.

Source: Punch