COVID-19: Access Bank in Deep Mess …The Gov. Sanwo-Olu Connection
- Bayo Adetu
- May 3, 2020
- BUSINESS
- 0 Comments
Despite making a donation of N1billion to support the Federal Government on the fight against COVID-19, all staff of Access Bank have continued to languish in pain as the bank is sinking in deep financial mess.
A few days ago, Mr Herbert Wigwe, the Group Managing Director of Access Bank announced in a video that every staff of the bank are in for a mandatory pay cut or outright termination of appointment, while 340 branches of the bank would remain shut for the rest of the year.
While Mr Wigwe tried to link the bank’s woes to the on-going lockdown, the reverse is actually the case. Firstly, Newscarte gathered that Access Bank is in trouble because of the too many branches it inherited from the defunct Intercontinental Bank and now Diamond Bank.
The management of Access Bank has been having sleepless nights because most of the branches are not doing well in terms of turnover. Most of the expenses of these distressed branches are being paid for from the turnover of other branches, little wonder Mr Wigwe did not hesitate to shut them for the rest of the year. A source in the bank also squealed to our Correspondent that outright sale of some of the bank’s properties are also being considered.
Meanwhile, the last straw that broke the camel’s back was the removal of Mr Akinwunmi Ambode as the governor of Lagos State. It was the Epe politician who practically moved all the accounts of Lagos State to Access Bank, solely because of his personal relationship with the bank.
One of the bank’s Senior Marketers (names withheld) is Ambode’s baby mama since his time as the Accountant General, and she lured her man to do business with Access Bank. In fact, the then governor Ambode ordered all civil servants to open their salary accounts with the bank.
Besides, most deals of the state government (both illegal and genuine) were easily routed through Access Bank.
But when Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu emerged, he stopped most of the privileges and deals Access Bank was enjoying, and this subsequently puts the bank in a tight corner.
