BY PETER EGWUATU
The management of Oceanic Bank International Plc has reassured its shareholders of recapitalising the bank even as its merger arrangement with First Bank of Nigeria Plc failed.

Vanguard authoritatively learnt that talks on the merger failed because both banks could not reached to several terms.

In a statement made available to Vanguard , the bank said “ with regards to the discussions between Oceanic Bank and First Bank in respect of the recapitalization plans, the board and management wishes to inform all stakeholders that both parties have amicably reached an understanding to discontinue further discussions.

“This position was reached after both parties were unable to agree on the terms of the commercial consideration for the combination of both organisations.”

The statement said “ Oceanic Bank however wishes to assure its various stakeholders that the bank is working at concluding other recapitalization plans and details of such will be unveiled in the next couple of weeks.”

Consequently, Oceanic Bank commend its  customers and all stakeholders for their continued loyalty and patronage as evidenced in increased deposits and other financial indices. The bank remains committed to delivering superior value and excellent customer service.

It will be recalled that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had stated that the banking industry will experience the merger of 10 banks in a matter of weeks while two Islamic banks will  open shop before the end of the year.

In bid to sanitise the industry, the apex bank introduced a number of reform measures including the sack of  executive management of eight banks and the injection of N620 billion bailout fund.  The eight banks are expected to seek fresh capital injection which may be through a core investor or through merger and acquisition.

It will be recalled that Oceanic Bank in its unaudited third quarter’s results recorded significant imorovment as its bottom line over the comparative period in 2009, were greatly boosted by low cost of funds (on the back of the drop in interest rates in Q2 2010),

As at the end of the third quarter, the Group has written back N14.8billion  while cumulative recoveries on September 30 year-to-date (YTD) were N111.4billion.

In the 9-month period under review, the Bank’s deposit book grew by 15 per cent to close at N626 billion, primarily due to sustained customer loyalty, the resilience of the Oceanic Brand, excellent customer service and the effectiveness of its 375-branch network.

In the 3rd quarter, Oceanic Bank held its first interactive session with shareholders to brief  them of milestones achieved in its turnaround program and options being explored by its Board to recapitalize the institution. Shareholders voiced their support for the Bank’s demonstration of transparency and responsibility, and engaged the Bank’s Board and Management in a frank exchange of ideas over its future.