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The Central Bank is
yet to offer any clue on the interested bidders for some Nigerian
banks, months after officially declaring them up for sale and open to
investors.

However, five or
six of the banks rescued in a $4 billion bailout last year will
announce negotiations with potential investors in the coming weeks, the
Central Bank governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, said yesterday, according
to a Reuters report.

“In the next two to
three weeks, you will hear announcements from five or six institutions
about negotiations on registered acquisitions,” the report quoted him
as saying.

The Central Bank
has over the months, indicated that it has been receiving bids from
interested local and international investors in the rescued banks. It
also gave indications that it had received bids for four of the rescued
banks and that foreign institutions were involved in the bidding
process, as well as several local banks and private equity firms in
partnership with foreign banks.

The Central Bank
rescued nine banks last year, which it deemed undercapitalised and
posing a risk to the other banks in the system. It has since been
seeking new investors to recapitalise them.

A Central Bank
staff, who asked not to be named, said worries on whether there are
bidders should be put to rest, assuring that the interested investors
would be named soon.

“At least three
investors, both local and foreign, are in talks with each of the
rescued banks. Negotiations are on,” he said, adding that it is when
choices have been made and due processes have been followed, that the
regulatory body would make the names public.

Awaiting Asset Management Company

The Central Bank
also stated that the Asset Management Company (AMCON), set up to
purchase non-performing loans and chase the recovery of bad loans,
would begin purchasing assets in the next “two to three weeks. By the
end of this year, we will have put the banking problems behind us,” the
report said.

Finance experts,
however, said there still remain some blurred aspects on the
administration of the company, which is expected to acquire eligible
bank assets from eligible financial institutions, purchase, or
otherwise invest in eligible equities among others.

Bismarck Rewane,
managing director of Financial Derivatives Company, for instance, said
there are still some unclear issues regarding the administration of the
company.

“Issues on the
funding of AMCON remain unclear, though the AMCON executives have been
cleared by the Senate and investors are already scrambling for deals
and steals. The AMCON CEO, however, remains upbeat to deliver on
mandate.

“Biddings have
closed for rescued banks, and announcements of the preferred bidders
will be made in October. AMCON should be in a position to absorb a good
level of toxic assets in 2011. The final negotiation and central exit
is expected early 2011, existing shareholders are to be carried along
in the process,” Mr. Rewane said.

The nine bailed out
banks made provisions by the end of September of more than 2.2 trillion
naira for loan losses. Potential investors are anxious to see how
quickly the AMCON can be set up to soak up bad debts and make the banks
attractive.