OCEANIC BANK - Appreciates Customers' Role in Turnaround

Monday 30 August 2010
- Culled from The PunchThe management of Oceanic Bank International Plc has expressed appreciation to its numerous customers for supporting its steady recovery and the progress made in its turnaround programme.A statement from the bank on Friday said that the growing customer confidence and loyalty was a vindication of the effectiveness of the recovery strategy put in place by the management.The statement said, ”Oceanic Bank will continue to remain focused on providing efficient customer-focused services. This is what motivates the bank‘s management and staff as we strive towards making the bank an enterprise that gives all its stakeholders an assurance of peace at all times.”It noted that with a branch network of over 365, customer base of about 4.9 million and a deposit base of over N600bn, Oceanic had established itself as one of the leading banks in the country. According to the statement, the bank‘s business performance, commitment to good corporate governance and transparency are attributes that have further enhanced its brand equity in the financial services sector.The statement said, ”Oceanic has emerged a stronger institution from its restructuring, with prospects for a brighter future as we continue to collaborate with our stakeholders on the adoption of an effective recapitalisation plan.”It recalled that the turnaround programme, which followed the CBN intervention in the bank last August, had yielded impressive results driven by growth in retail banking, improved efficiency in business processes and loans recoveries.According to the statement, the bank recently announced gross earnings of N64.27bn and profit before tax of N10.19bn in its un-audited results for the half year ended, June 30, 2010, compared to a loss before tax of N50.78bn in the corresponding period of 2009.According to the statement, Oceanic Bank‘s management is exploring several options for recapitalising the bank through a combination of internally generated profits, sale of non- performing loans to the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria and capital injection from strategic investors.Industry experts say the eventual recapitalisation of the bank will significantly boost profitability, improve returns for shareholders and provide a solid platform for sustained service delivery.