Frauds & Scandals | |
Frauds & Scandals | |
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Friday, May 24, 2019 / 04:45PM / By
IndependentNG via NAN / Header Image Credit: harrisburgpi.com
The Federal Government of Nigeria has initiated criminal investigation
into alleged misappropriation of $2 Billion (Two Billion US Dollars)
worth of Atlas Mara’s Union Back Plc shares owned by 65,000
shareholders, according to a recent News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) report.
NAN source in the Federal Ministry of Justice
disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja.
The investigation hinged on a petition reporting the
alleged fraud submitted to the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar
Malami, SAN, dated April 3, 2019.
The petition is titled “Official corruption, misuse
of FGN USD two billion, fraud and unjust enrichment of persons who dispossessed
more than 65,000 Nigerians and conferred ownership of the Bank on few Nigerians
and their foreign accomplices’’.
The petition had accused persons including
the former Central Bank Governor, the Emir of Kano, HRH Alhaji Sanusi Lamido
Sanusi II, under whose watch the alleged fraud was perpetuated. Others included
the Minister of Budget and National
Planning, Sen. Udo Udoma and the Minister of Trade and Investment, Okey
Enelamah.
Enelamah was particularly fingered as the mastermind of the transaction
by allegedly leading Africa Capital Alliance to form the Mauritius shell
company to house Nigerians pretending to be foreign investors.
The transactions allegedly dispossessed Nigerian
shareholders and investors in order to transfer ownership of the bank to a few
persons including insiders, chieftains of competitor banks and others who
presumably would not have passed CBN’s “fit and proper’’ test for bank
ownership.
The petition claimed that Enelamah allegedly organised
the registration of the offshore shell company in Mauritius called Union
Global Partners Limited for the purpose of disguising the true majority
ownership of Union Bank shares concealed in the offshore company.
The petition alleged that the transactions commenced
under Udoma’s supervision as Chairman of Security and Exchange Commission and
sealed up when he became the Chairman of Union Bank of Nigeria Plc.
“The circumstances can best be described as official
corruption and insider trading’’, the petition alleged.
The petition further alleged that Udoma and the officials illicitly granted
a renewable five (5) year waiver to Union Bank of Nigeria to remain listed on
the exchange in spite of being owned by a few private equity firms till today.
According to the petition, the alleged unlawful action
is to ensure the more than 65,000 Nigeria former shareholders whose shares were
diluted from 85 per cent to less than 15 per cent of public float to still be
listed on Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).
Petition Excerpts
“It is to be recalled that 49% shares of Union Bank of
Nigeria plc is now majority owned and controlled by London listed Atlas Mara,
the investment company led by Robert Diamond Jr.
“Mr Diamond is a former Chief Executive Officer of
Barclays Bank who was sacked for his involvement in manipulating Libor.
“Not only is Mr Diamond not a fit and proper person to
own a bank according to the rules of Nigeria, he had also been blacklisted by
the Bank of England as a result of the Libor manipulation.
“One wonders how the former CBN Governor, Sanusi
Lamido Sanusi authorised the Union Bank change of ownership transaction and
bridged it with USD two billion national patrimony, in spite of glaring
evidence of fraud and the nature of the ultimate foreign owner who was already
known and waiting in the wings.
“There are evidence that Atlas Mara has visions of
owning 100% of Union Bank of Nigeria plc which they can only achieve by buying
shares warehoused by the few privileged Nigerians that acquired the bank in
apparently unwholesome circumstances.
“Those few privileged Nigerians are now cashing in on
their loot in transactions with Atlas Mara, at the expense of dispossessed
Nigerians.
“It is public knowledge that previous transactions on
Union Bank Nigeria plc for Bob Diamond’s Atlas Mara were advised by Rothschild
& Cie; and funded by investors mostly in London.
“Meanwhile it was also revealed that Union Bank of
Nigeria plc has concealed from regulators, investors and the public outstanding
Swiss Court judgment debts of more than N1bn (One Billion Naira) and imminent
judgment debts of N5bn (Five Billion Naira) respectively.
“Available evidence shows that many
unhappy shareholders are lamenting that the bank has not paid cash
dividends in nearly 10 years while the financial statements show princely
remunerations to executive management, directors and lawyers paid to defer more
than US$ 50million of claims against the bank’’, the petition alleged.
Credits
The article Emir Sanusi In Fresh Crisis, Fingered In
Union Bank Shares Fraud first
appeared in IndependentNG on Friday, 24 May 2019.
Visit Union Bank Plc IR Page in Proshare
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