FG, Oceanic Bank partner to create middle class

07.01.2008

Chief Executive of Oceanic Bank International Plc, Dr. (Mrs.) Cecilia Ibru, has assured that Oceanic Bank would work effectively with the Federal Government to create a middle-class society with a view to properly developing the country.

Speaking with select finance journalists over the weekend, Ibru said “if you look at anywhere in the world, any successful country puts into consideration the middle class, and the middle-class is an area that you can pay attention to in order to grow. The middle-class (person) is somebody who is reasonably comfortable.

“When the middle-class becomes big, it would drive the nation and the sooner we key into the concept, it would enable Nigeria to actualise the potential that we have all over us.”

She said the bank, currently in partnership with some state governments on the Public Private Sector Participation Scheme, would also work towards ameliorating the poverty level in the country.

This, she said, would be done through effective funding of the real sector and the bank’s poverty alleviation schemes. Commending the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for fulfilling its promise of allowing Oceanic Bank manage a portion of the external reserves, she said management of the reserves has placed Oceanic Bank high above many others in the system in the international community.

“It gives us leverage in the market, it shows that when they talk about Oceanic Bank, you can say it has nearly $1 billion of reserves being managed under her name. That can only help us to be more relevant in the international market.”

She also assured that the bank would consistently enhance its shareholders value through bumper returns on their investment. The bank’s board had proposed to pay a dividend of N1.02 per share in the financial year ended September 30, 2007 compared to 42 kobo paid in the last financial year. The bank, it would be recalled, had promised a dividend of 75 kobo in its last offer prospectus.

Commenting on the proposed dividend, chairman of the Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN), Chief Boniface Okezie, described it as an excellent proposal which the shareholders will ratify at the bank’s forthcoming annual general meeting (AGM) in the New Year.