The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation has paid N90.13 billion to depositors of the 48 deposit money banks in-liquidation in the country as at December 31, 2012.

The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of NDIC, Alhaji Umaru Ibrahim disclosed this Friday in Benin City, Edo State, during an address he delivered on the occasion of the NDIC Special Day at the 2013 Niger-Delta Trade Fair.

The NDIC Managing Director stated that the current payments represented an increase of about N10 billion when compared to N80.18 billion paid to depositors of such failed banks as at December 31, 2011.

Similarly, he said N2.50 billion had been paid to depositors of the 103 closed micro-finance banks, as at 31st December, 2012 as against N2.25 billion that was paid to the insured depositors of the closed MFBs as at the end of December 2011.

However, the NDIC boss whose address was read by Mr. Sunday Oluyemi, Zonal Controller, NDIC Benin, lamented that on few instances, delay in payment were experienced due to court cases instituted by shareholders of the affected banks against the Central Bank of Nigeria and the NDIC challenging the revocation of their bank’s licences.

“NDIC has consistently guaranteed prompt payment to all depositors of the 48 banks in-liquidation since 1994 to date. The reimbursement cycle has been progressive from the period covering 90 days of liquidation of failed banks in 1994 when direct payment was made on the premises of the closed banks to 30 days in 2004 when Purchase and Assumption (P&A) resolution was adopted and within 48 hours when the bridge bank approach was adopted,” he stated.

Umaru seized the opportunity to appeal to all depositors of banks-in-liquidation to come forward and claim their deposit if they have not done so. And this he said can be done through the branches of NDIC and agents located in every part of the country.

On his part, the Edo State Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Mr Macdonald Obasuke said that the prompt intervention by the NDIC had rekindled the trust of Nigerians in the banking industry.

Obasuke who was represented at the occasion by the permanent secretary, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Ms. Osayuware Idahosa pledged the state government’s commitment to the total transformation of the state’s economy “by providing an atmosphere suitable for investors.”

He noted that the government of Adams Oshiomhole was partnering with several local and foreign financial institutions like the Bank of Industry to make funds available to small and medium scale entrepreneurs in the state.

Source: Thisday (by Adibe Emenyonu)