A Man Disrupt Banking System with his Gut.

Those men that had great discoveries were known as the crazy ones. Such is the story of this middle age man from a humble background.
Prior to the digital banking system we had now. Banks in existence then were analogs & crude.

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Transformation of banks from analog to digital system could be hinged on transition from Military to Civilian government. Which brought about a new policy for banks at that time.

The CBN under the auspices of Charles Soludo had increased the minimum capital for banks across..

..Nigeria to 25billion Naira. A big shocker at that time because most banks were on the verge of bankruptcy. History is about to repeat itself.

While other banks are struggling to meet the new CBN’s quota, Standard Trust Bank (refered to as STB) was pursuing a merger..

..with one of the top 3 banks at that time namely UBA, First & Union Bank.

Flashback, during the 90’s, the tremendous amount of banks in operation overwhelmed the regulatory agencies. Thus, leading to little or no maintenance of assets and fiscal policies of banks at that time.

A lot of depositors lost their money as they watched their banks declared insolvency. A few banks were salvaged from this distress. Part of them is Crystal Bank (later known as STB).

Tony Elumelu was an Executive with a reputable Assurance company in Nigeria.

After studying the banking system for a while, he realized the market opportunities if power should change.

To benefit from the system, he decided to start out on his own. He started Banc Garanti Ltd with his friends which later acquired MBCOM & known as Continental Trust Bank

To take over Crystal Bank. He made an irresistible offer to its shareholders. To recall, those offers were exceedingly rare to come by in the business. It took some guts to pull such a stunt. Like a surprise, him & his team acquired CB after a successful takeover. Now STB

Back in time, part of his board’s plan was to raise the revenue of STB with at least 6 figures. But Tony’s mind was set on how to acquire either of those banks currently facing distress as a result of the CBN’s new policy. STB as a bank had plans on how to meet the new quota.

The story behind UBA.

As tension of meeting CBN’s deadline for payment of capital base quota grew amidst the banks. Internal conflict deepened in UBA. CBN gave them 24hrs to choose a new Chairman. Whilst, Hakeem Bello Osagie (HBO) was the CEO & Chairman.

Tony went for the playmaker, who was the largest shareholder of UBA then. He contacted HBO & offered him an irresistible offer to join STB. His tactics & managerial skills paved way for him at that time. He took UBA by the balls & that was how he pulled a successful merger.

Nothing was spectacular about what he did but it is a clear indication of gut that led to Standard Trust Bank and now United Bank of Africa. “The deal between UBA/STB remains today as one of the most significant events in Nigeria’s corporate history”.

See you soon!