by NIyi JACOBS
The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on Banking and Ancillary Institutions, Hon. Eze Nwachukwu Eze, has reaffirmed the National Assembly’s commitment to working with key stakeholders to design a robust and responsible exit strategy for the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON).
Speaking Thursday at a stakeholders’ roundtable held at the Royal Institute for Training & Human Capital Development, Zuma Rock Resort, Niger State, Eze emphasized that the sunset of AMCON must not be treated as a mere administrative closure, but as a significant milestone in Nigeria’s economic evolution.
The roundtable, themed “Exit Strategy for AMCON: Policy Considerations and Implementation Plans,” was organized by the House Committee on Banking and Ancillary Institutions. It brought together policymakers, regulators, legal experts, and academics to discuss AMCON’s wind-down path in alignment with international best practices.
“An exit strategy that is rushed, poorly designed, or inconsistently implemented could undo years of financial stabilization work and expose the banking sector to systemic risks,” Hon. Eze warned. “However, a well-structured and policy-aligned transition will demonstrate Nigeria’s institutional maturity.”
He called for a thoughtful approach that ensures continuity in financial system stability. Key considerations, according to him, include managing residual assets and liabilities, adjusting the legal and regulatory frameworks, and institutionalizing lessons learned from AMCON’s operations.
Eze also cautioned that calls for AMCON’s exit must be weighed against Nigeria’s broader macroeconomic realities, including rising debt, forex volatility, inflationary pressures, and global economic shifts. He underscored the need for safeguards to prevent a recurrence of the circumstances that necessitated AMCON’s creation.
The Committee, he assured, will continue to work with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), the Ministry of Finance, the NDIC, and other stakeholders to ensure the Corporation’s exit is smooth, efficient, and transparent.
In his remarks, the Managing Director/CEO of AMCON, Mr. Gbenga Alade, noted that the Corporation has performed impressively since inception, recovering N2.13 trillion and outperforming its global peers.
“Compared to Malaysia’s Danaharta’s 58% and China’s 33%, AMCON has achieved 89% recovery on the basis of purchase price,” he said. He added that the Corporation has saved thousands of jobs and contributed to reducing unemployment through its Asset Management Partners (AMPs) initiative.
Alade explained that AMCON has been actively working on a phased exit plan that addresses litigation backlogs, unresolved Eligible Bank Assets (EBAs), asset disposal, divestment, and human resource issues.
He stressed that AMCON’s assets are not government property, but collaterals pledged by loan defaulters. He warned that many high-profile obligors are waiting for AMCON’s closure to evade repayment, with some hiding assets offshore.
Legal and financial experts including Prof. Uche Uwaleke and Mr. Oluseye Opasanya (SAN) urged the National Assembly to strengthen AMCON’s legal framework, block loopholes exploited by debtors, and push for consistent judicial support.
They argued that without political will and inter-agency cooperation, AMCON’s efforts could be undermined, and the country left with a bigger debt burden.
The roundtable ended with a consensus on the need for a technically sound, transparent, and phased AMCON exit strategy, with legislative backing and firm government support.
