The Central Bank of Nigeria has sought to save many of the nation’s largest institutions undergoing financial turmoil in an attempt to save jobs and the economy. The Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), an organization setup by the Central Bank of Nigeria, has sought to buy out and sell non-performing loans from as far back as 2 decades ago. The following institutions, some being fined by the Central Bank of Nigeria, some being saved by the Central Bank of Nigeria, and some aggressive startups, are some of the largest businesses in the country undergoing the most significant financial troubles:

MTN Nigeria – South Africa owned Mobile Telecommunications Network (MTN) Nigeria was fined a whooping $5.2 Billion by the Central Bank of Nigeria in 2018; in between financial setbacks brought on by the economic recession that has affected all players in the telecommunications industry.

Polaris (Skye) Bank – Skye Bank was deemed irredeemable due to financial misappropriations brought about by former Chairman, Olatunde Ayeni; until the Central Bank of Nigeria intervened and converted Skye into Polaris bank. The “new” Polaris Bank continues to have significant hurdles yet to scale through to remain sustainable in the market.

Diamond Bank – In 2018, 4 directors of the bank quit and it was made public that the commercial bank was undergoing significant financial setbacks, amidst a massive headquarters being built in Oniru Royal Estate, Victoria Island, Lagos. Access Bank, a top 10 commercial bank in Nigeria, is currently bidding to take over Diamond Bank.

Miniso – The new entrant in Nigeria’s retail industry is undergoing financial setbacks due to not meeting up with sales expectations the past 2 years. They opened over 15 stores within only 2 years of entering the Nigerian market and in 2018, were left with no choice but to reduce their workforce by over 40%.

Sun International/ Federal Palace Hotel – Known as one of Nigeria’s top 10 hotels, Federal Palace Hotel has been experiencing financial issues since 2012 brought on partly by financial misappropriations alleged by co-owner Alex Ibru against brother and co-owner Goodie Ibru. Major Shareholder, Sun International has been displeased with the lack of profitability of the hotel and announced in 2018 that they were seeking to exit the Nigerian market.

 

Lagos Continental (Formerly Intercontinental Hotels Group Lagos) – In 2017, Lagos Continental was unable to pay back promised monthly disbursements that had accumulated in excess of millions of dollars, to parent company Intercontinental Hotels Group (IHG) Lagos which led to IHG terminating all contracts with Lagos Continental (owned by Milan Group Nigeria) and exiting the Nigerian market. Lagos Continental continues to experience financial setbacks as negative reviews continue to pour in online and they recently sued 5 staff members for theft of 3 million Naira. Skye Bank, with Olatunde Ayeni as then chairman, was one of the biggest lenders to Milan’s Intercontinental Hotel. Skye Bank took over Lagos Continental in 2018 in an attempt to better manage the debt of over $30 million owed to Skye.

Jumia Nigeria – Jumia is one of Nigeria’s largest retailers. The online giant has raised over $400 million since inception but never became profitable. The Jumia Group, spread across Africa, has raised almost a billion dollars. In 2017, the main investors of Jumia, Rocket Internet and MTN, indicated that they are unwilling to continue funding the company. Similarly, Jumia’s biggest competitor, Konga, could not raise additional capital in 2017 and was eventually given to/merged with Yudala, a smaller player in the Nigerian online market.

Ntel – Ntel Nigeria launched in 2014 with massive plans to compete with MTN, Glo, Airtel and Etisalat Companies but the telecommunications industry hit a snag amidst the economic recession of President Buhari’s era brought on by the massive corruption that occured during Goodluck Jonathan’s era. Ntel ran out of funding very quickly and to date have only been able to open less than 30 service centers/stores across the nation compared to the projected 200+ service centers. Their chairman was formerly Olatunde Ayeni but changed hands to Billionaire TY Danjuma to raise additional capital.

9mobile (Formerly Etisalat Nigeria) – 9mobile is undergoing a process of being sold to the highest bidder after largest shareholder, Etisalat UAE exited the company due to high debts and unprofitability.

Best Western Nigeria – Best Western International withdraw their business license agreement from Nigerian owners, Suru Group owned by Edward Akinlade, due to a lack of profitability. The Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria also took over Best Western buildings due to unpaid loans of over 15 million Naira owed to former Oceanic Bank of Nigeria managed by Cecilia Ibru of the Ibru family.

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Want to push your dreams in great-people, good-nation, poverty-ridden, corruption-stricken, high-potential country of Nigeria? You must read Olatorera Oniru’s 2018 e-book titled Push Your Dreams available now on Olatorera.com and on Amazon.com.

The Olatorera Consultancy brand has grown from an ambitious solo-preneur to a team of over 50 people highly assertive on providing the seal and stamp of “Africa’s Best” to great businesses in Africa and beyond. Chief Executive Consultant, Olatorera Oniru is very passionate about seeing businesses succeed and operate optimally. She is also notably passionate about witnessing Africa transformed into one of the world’s greatest continents. Olatorera Consultancy has an annual outline of businesses we work with. We currently do not accept unsolicited applications. To network with the team at Olatorera Consultancy Limited, please add your company to the reviews page here. An Olatorera Consultancy company representative may be in touch with you shortly after reviewing your company’s readiness for business consultation services.