NDIC kicks off sale of Heritage Bank assets

The Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) has initiated a nationwide auction of real estate and physical assets owned by the now-defunct Heritage Bank.

This move is a significant step toward paying out liquidation dividends to uninsured depositors.

In a statement on Monday, NDIC’s Director of Communications, Bashir Nuhu, announced the start of the sales process, aligning with the corporation’s mandate under Section 62 (1)(d) of the NDIC Act, 2023.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had revoked the bank’s license on June 3.

CBN said Heritage Bank violated section 12 of the Banks and Other Financial Act, the CBN as it could not improve its financial performance, “a situation which constitutes a threat to financial stability”.

The NDIC, acting as the liquidator of Heritage Bank, will oversee the sale across 36 locations from 4 December.

“The sale of landed assets is by competitive bidding and will take place at the 36 affected locations of the bank across the country, from Wednesday 4th December, 2024. Buyers who wish to participate in the auction are expected to follow laid down guidelines aimed at ensuring transparency, fair competition, equity and accountability to enable recovery of commensurate values from the exercise. This is vital for the payment of liquidation dividends to eligible claimants,” it said.

It said prospective buyers, including financial institutions, corporate bodies, and private individuals, are invited to participate in a competitive bidding process aimed at ensuring transparency and maximising the recovery value from these assets.

According to the statement, the sale extends to both the landed properties and chattels of Heritage Bank, with assets available for inspection before auction.

To promote financial inclusion, the NDIC will give preference to financial institutions willing to acquire properties and maintain operations at these sites, a move intended to sustain local access to financial services in areas previously served by the bank.

“In order to allow the continuation of provision of financial services to the Nigerian public at the locations of the closed bank towards bolstering financial inclusion, preference shall be given to financial institutions who are willing to buy any of the properties at the highest auctioned prices along with all the physical assets at wholesale value. However, Corporate bodies and Private individuals willing to compete are equally eligible to compete in the process without prejudice, as the auction shall be open and competitive to all bidders,” it said.

All participants are required to submit a 10 per cent bid security of their offered value, which must be deposited at designated NDIC offices in key locations, including Abuja, Lagos, Bauchi, Kano, Enugu, and Port Harcourt.

Mr Nuhu emphasised the corporation’s commitment to upholding transparency, equity, and accountability throughout the auction.

He noted that this process aims to secure a fair return for depositors by achieving the highest possible sale values for Heritage Bank’s assets, advancing NDIC’s mandate to protect depositors and ensure financial stability.

The corporation began paying insured deposits of up to N5 million per depositor within four days of the bank’s closure, using Bank Verification Numbers (BVN) to locate alternative accounts.

As of August, the NDIC said it has since reimbursed about 82.36 per cent of the total insured deposit to date.

It said the remaining 17.64 per cent of the insured deposits yet to be paid were largely depositors whose accounts have post no debits (PND) instructions or have no BVN.

Others are those with no alternative accounts in other banks or accounts with a KYC limit on the maximum lodgment per day and are yet to come forward for verification.

Depositors with balances above N5 million received the insured amount, while the corporation promised to pay the remaining uninsured balances as liquidation dividends once the bank’s assets are recovered and debts settled.