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AMCON bad debts drop by N1 trillion but…

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AMCON takes over ex-minister's property over N1bn debt

The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) on Monday disclosed that the total of outstanding debt by loan defaulters on its books has dropped by N1 trillion to N4.4 trillion

The disclosed figure was an improvement from the N5.4 trillion disclosed by the corporation under the comparable period of 2019.

The corporation’s Group Head of Enforcement, Joshua Ikioda made this revelation, at a two-day training for Federal High Court legal assistants and court registrars in Abuja

Ikioda who was speaking on the paper: “Overview of AMCON from Cradle to Date and the Implication of the Bad Debt to the Nigerian Economy,” also revealed that 360 debtors represent 80 per cent of the N4.4 trillion of the total outstanding debt to the corporation, and that all agencies of the government and other stakeholders must support AMCON’s debt recovery efforts.

“the N4.4 trillion held by AMCON is bigger than the N3.85 trillion capital expenditure budget of the federal government for 2021, the N3.12 trillion for total foreign debt service and personnel cost of N3.7trillion.”

“The debt would be enough to complete the revival of the moribund Ajaokuta Steel Company in Kogi State, and capitalise over two million micro-businesses with N2 million each or 200,000 Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) with N20 million per SME.”

Read also: AMCON seizes Jimoh Ibrahim’s properties, freezes accounts over N69.4bn debt

AMCON was created in 2010 to look into non-performing loans (NPLs) that crippled banks’ balance sheet positions. The corporation’s mandate was to recover the NPLs from the debtors and return the funds to government coffers to support the economy.

Meanwhile, the amended AMCON Act, signed by President Muhammadu Buhari, gave AMCON powers to recover debts owed by obligors.

Last year, the Federal Government through the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) concluded plans to start a fund that will operate as a bridge bank to help invigorate beleaguered companies.

The new rule will expect every lender to make an annual contribution of 10 bases of their total asset.

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