BOI Disburses N781bn In Loans

                  BOI Disburses N781bn In Loans
Mr Rasheed Olaoluwa, the Managing Director, Bank of Industry (BOI), on Saturday said the bank had disbursed N781 billion in loans to small, medium and large enterprises in Nigeria as at December 2014.

Olaoluwa disclosed this at a media parley organised by the bank in Lagos.

He said that the bank’s total loan disbursement in 2014 was N127 billion, adding that there had been an increase in the bank’s support to both small and large enterprises in the country.

The BOI boss said the bank recorded an increase of about 9.3 per cent in its loan and advances portfolio in 2014 from the 2013 figure.

He said the bank was focussing on the real sector of the economy with the introduction of Cottage Agro Processing Fund and NollyFund to support the sector.

Olaoluwa said there had been improvement in BOI debt recovery through the establishment of its Loan Recovery Department which led to the reduction in non-performance loans to 14 per cent in 2014.

According to him, BOI recovered N2.9 billion bad debts in 2014 using all available legal instruments.

Olaoluwa said the bank’s operation was guided by its Five-Year Strategy Plan 2015-2019 aimed at making BOI Africa’s leading development bank with global best practices.

“ The bank disbursed a total loan of N127 billion in 2014, bringing BOI’s cumulative disbursements to N781 billion.

“Our mission is to help in transforming Nigeria’s industrial sector by providing financial and business support services,” he said.

Mr Waheed Olagunju, the Executive Director, Small and Medium Enterprises in BOI, said the risk assets of the bank in the SMEs sector stood at N683 between 2001 and 2014.

Olagunju said that about 1.8 million jobs had been created by the bank through SMEs as at 2014, adding that the impact would have been more if the bank had made more funds available to SMEs.

According to him, BOI has increased the number of state offices from seven to 14 to ensure proximity of the bank to more small scale operators in the country.

He said the bank’s loan target to SMEs in 2015 was N15 billion to create additional jobs.

Olagunju said that BOI had signed agreement with 10 SME-friendly commercial banks on concessional loans at the rate of six per cent above the 13 per cent MPR. (NAN)