The Chief Executive Officer, CEO, of Asset Management Company, AMCON, Ahmed Kuru, has disclosed that the agency may lease out seized assets to raise funds for its operations.
AMCON may opt for the real-estate scheme by the end of the year if it’s unable to generate funds for the repayment of its bond payment, Vanguard reports.
The agency was created six years ago to take on non-performing loans in banks and rescue the nation’s banking industry from systemic collapse.
According to Kuru, “It plans to sell the properties when the economy improves and the assets can attract fair value.
“The agency is confiscating more assets than its receiving from its recovery efforts as businesses battle to sell products and generate cash.”
Stressing that companies that owe AMCON are struggling to off-set their debts due to the slump in crude prices that has crippled foreign-exchange supplies and the country’s economy, Kuru said the agency has no plan to rescue banks as it’s focused on repaying the N5.2trillion outstanding bond in the next nine years.
He said AMCON incurred about 14,000 non-performing loans at the cost of N3.9 trillion in a government-led bailout of ten banks following the 2009 banking crisis.
Kuru said the levy that sees banks pay 0.5 percent of their assets annually has helped generated N190 billion for the agency, adding that the shortfall has widened due to the downturn in the economy and with the price of assets falling below their book value.
“We are in the second phase, which is redemption of our debts, not bailing out banks
“We are not in the perpetual business of bailing out banks.
“Our activity here is directly linked to the economy. The combination of the economy picking up for the banks and also for the obligors will help Amcon meet its objectives and wind down in 2023 as planned,” he said.
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