The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) says some debtors of collapsed banks are deliberately refusing to repay their loans. The corporation accused them of hiding assets, using legal delays and resorting to intimidation to block recovery, the Daily Trust reported via AllAfrica. It said the money belongs to depositors. The tactics hold up claims owed to customers of liquidated institutions.
Ogungbemi Theophilus, director of the NDIC's Asset Management Department, raised the concerns on Monday. He spoke at a Stakeholders' Seminar and Public Relations Workshop in Abuja. He said some borrowers believe they no longer have to pay once a bank's licence is revoked. "A loan that was not repaid when the bank was alive does not become easier to recover when the bank is dead," he said.
Theophilus said recovering unpaid loans remains one of the hardest parts of liquidating a bank. He warned that delays in collecting loans and selling physical assets can sharply cut their value. That leaves less money for depositors.
The NDIC held public auctions through competitive sealed bidding on November 3 and 4, he said. They disposed of physical assets of three banks in liquidation: Union Homes Savings and Loans, Heritage Bank, and Resort Savings and Loans. Appointed auctioneers ran the sales in Lagos, Taraba and Adamawa states.
Theophilus also warned that recovery costs must not outweigh the value recovered. "If it costs us N10m to recover N8m, the depositor has lost," he said. He told professionals working on recoveries that the corporation has zero tolerance for insider dealing, undervaluation, collusion with buyers and diversion of proceeds.
The NDIC is now drafting a comprehensive Asset Management Policy, Theophilus said. It aims to tighten how assets are identified, documented, valued and sold, and to improve accountability. The corporation also plans to work more closely with auctioneers, valuers, sales agents and surveyors. The goal is to settle depositors' claims faster.