By Obinna Chima
The founder of Zenith Bank Plc, Mr. Jim Ovia, has stressed the importance of a vibrant banking sector for the diversification of the Nigerian economy.
Speaking at the ‘Going for Growth 2.0,’ in Abuja on Wednesday, Ovia said Nigerian banks had over the years, contributed significantly to the growth of the economy.
“In 2004, before consolidation, all the Nigerian banks put together, their total market capitalization was below N12 billion and all of them put together could not lend one-tenth of what Dangote Cement required. But today, one of the top tier banks is much larger than all the banks’ shareholders’ funds put together in 2004.
“So, that is a testimony that Nigerian banks are solid. We have even started to export our expertise to West and East African countries. Nigerian banks in Ghana are the ones showing the way. They didn’t know about recapitalisation, until we thought them,” he said.
*More details later…
