Fidelity Bank
Fidelity Bank Plc, has restated its readiness to take full advantage of the new credit policy guideline recently released by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), to support the growth of the agriculture and manufacturing sectors of the economy.
The bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Nnamdi Okonkwo, made this known on a monitored television show in Lagos.
Okonkwo applauded the regulator for its foresight in creating the credit guidelines, noting that the policy will go a long way in moderating interest rates downwards.
“The issue had long been about interest rates. Now, CBN has come up with this very ingenious way to address this challenge,” he said.
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The Fidelity Bank boss explained that the credit policy allows banks to get back some of their liquidity on the condition that they extend affordable and long-term credit to the real sector.
With a minimum tenor of seven years, and a two-year moratorium, Okonkwo said the facilities would be administered at an interest rate of nine per cent, but debunked assertions that Nigerian financial institution’s lacked requisite capacity to implement the credit policy.
Emphasising the importance of the real sector in diversifying Nigeria’s mono-oil economy, he clarified on bank’s inability to process credit for these sectors from three perspectives, including liquidity and capital adequacy, human capital as well as financial intermediation.
He said: “In the Nigerian Banking industry today, the Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) averages show that banks have the capacity to lend to these sectors.
There might be one or two players that might have challenges but the regulator at every point keeps an eye on them and makes policies that protect them.”
Source: G Business
