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by Ray Echebiri (Author)
The Power of One Man is a lucid account of the Professor Chukwuma Soludo-engineered banking consolidation - its launch and implementation, and how it transformed the Nigerian banking industry. The take-off point of the narrative is a vivid account of the liberalisation of the national economy, the consequent deregulation of the banking industry, and the resultant proliferation of banks. The deregulation of the banking industry resulted in the mushrooming of banks all over the place; at some point, well over 100 banks dotted the Nigerian banking space. By 2004, however, the number of banks in the country had shrunk to 89, following the collapse of some of the banks. The crash of some of the banks in quick succession almost completely eroded public confidence in the country's banking system. Allowing this to continue was going to spell doom for the national economy. To arrest the situation and also transform the nation's banking industry, Soludo who was barely a month in office as Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) embarked on banking reforms that had all the trappings of a revolution. The prompting for the reforms was his discontent with the fragility and meagre capital base of most of the 89 banks that littered the Nigerian banking space, and their inability to drive the growth and development of the national economy at a rapid pace. The major objective of the reforms, therefore, was to transform the country's banking system to one that exudes stability, and populated by well-capitalised, strong banks that can champion the country's economic renaissance. Expectedly, the implementation of the consolidation agenda was not a walk in the park. The journey was tough and rough. But with Soludo's unflinching and total commitment to the programme, and the backing of his boss, President Olusegun Obasanjo, its success was as sure as night follows day. At the end of the 18-month timeframe set for the exercise, 25 banks emerged, all of them capitalised to the required N25 billion; some even went way above the N25 billion base capital. Thus, a new Nigeria banking industry was born. Since then, the industry has been growing by leaps and bounds. One significant objective of the banking consolidation was to see Nigerian banks fly Nigeria's flag in different countries of Africa and around the world. That has come to pass. Nigerian banks, especially First Bank, United Bank for Africa, Guaranty Trust Bank, Access Bank and Zenith Bank are everywhere dense in Africa. These banks are also bestriding the global financial markets like a colossus - their subsidiaries are competing favourably and operating profitably in different countries of the world. Certainly, the Nigerian banking industry envisioned in the 2004/2005 banking consolidation agenda is here.
