WorldStage Newsonline– With a debt portfolio of approximately N4.7 trillion which includes non-performing loans acquired from banks and other financial institutions, the new board of directors of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) has been directed to begin articulating a credible and sustainable exit framework, in alignment with the government’s broader economic reform agenda.
Finance Minister and coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Olawale Edun who gave the charge on Wednesday in Abuja during the inauguration of the new board said, “While AMCON was created as a temporary intervention, its winding down must be approached with caution and strategy.”
Specifically, he charged the board to speed up debt recoveries, saying, “Nigerians look to AMCON not just as a recovery agency, but as a vehicle for transparency, accountability, and the efficient resolution of non-performing loans that continue to weigh down our banking system and public finances.”
It will be recalled that AMCON purchased 12,743 non-performing loans worth N3.797 trillion from 22 eligible financial institutions; AMCON’s intervention was funded by a debt obligation of N4.65 trillion, which is to be repaid to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN); The corporation’s primary goal is to recover these debts and resolve the financial challenges facing the Nigerian banking system.
The Minister emphasized some of the key priority areas for the immediate attention of the new board to include enhanced asset, saying, AMCON’s current portfolio of unrecovered debts remained a matter of national concern and the Board must work assiduously to strengthen the Corporation’s asset recovery strategy, including through legal enforcement, restructuring, and the sale of assets.
On governance and accountability, he said “it is imperative that this new Board upholds the principles of good corporate governance, transparency in operations, and strict adherence to the rule of law.”
On the need for collaboration with stakeholders, he said the board must ensure strategic collaboration with relevant MDAs, the CBN, the Judiciary, and the National Assembly as a unified approach is essential to ensure that its recovery mandate is not undermined.
He said the reform agenda of President Bola Tinubu’s administration is cantered on economic stability, job creation, and private sector-led growth. AMCON’s effective performance under your stewardship will contribute significantly to the achievement of these objectives.
The new AMCON board is chaired by Dr Bala Mohammed Bello. The Non-Executive Directors are Yusuf Tegina, Adeyemo Adeoye, Charles Odion Iyiore, Yahaya Ibrahim, and Emily Chidinma Osuji.
The Minister said the inauguration ceremony was not merely a procedural event, but “a defining moment in the continued effort of this administration to promote financial stability, enhance investor confidence, and reposition Nigeria’s financial institutions for long-term growth and sustainability.
“However, as we all know, the task of economic transformation is an ongoing journey. As our macroeconomic realities evolve, so too must the strategies we adopt to strengthen financial institutions, improve fiscal discipline, and unlock value from distressed assets. The role of AMCON is as critical today as it was at its inception—if not more so.”
In his remarks, the Managing Director and Chief Executive of AMCON, Mr Gbenga Alade, thanked the Honourable Minister for supporting the operations of the Corporation. Alade assured that, with the inauguration of the new board the recovery process would be enhanced.
