Soludo in his own words


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N1iC4Ax63kU


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxsNl3xRhf4&feature=related


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llfW3Jt2q2M&feature=related


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QDFxzkQwEhw&feature=related


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PbKHkL1V0Kc&feature=related


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WAndIVLdksQ&feature=related


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6AfLsyZIWhw&feature=related

Folks the economy reacts to market behaviour and there is nothing wrong with trying to re-assure Nigerians in the face of a world wide economic crisis. Soludo did nothing wrong.

Quote
Consolidation, external reserves saved Nigeria from global meltdown – Yar’Adua

President Umaru Yar’Adua on Monday commended the policies of the Central Bank of Nigeria, saying but for the consolidation of the banking sector and effective management of the external reserves, the impact of the devastating current global financial crisis would have shaken the nation’s economy.

. . . . . . . . . . . .

Yar’Adua, who spoke at the opening of an international conference to mark CBN’s 50th anniversary in Abuja, said unbiased observers of the bank, especially in the last five years, would agree that the apex bank had discharged its duties effectively.

The commendation of the CBN under Prof. Chukwuma Soludo by the President might be a tacit endorsement of the CBN Governor for a second term in office. His first tenure ends later this month and there had been intense lobbying for the top regulatory job in the country.

The President, who was represented at the event by the Minister of Finance, Dr. Mansur Muhtar, also said that the microfinance banking revolution initiated by the CBN was addressing the poverty question in the country.

http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art200905054355796

The Minister of Finance Dr Mansur Muhktar seems to agree, I hope they work together to tackle real issues rather than engaging in trivialities

President Obama said Good policy is good politics.

No matter the attempts to destroy your person, in the long run History will justify your actions.

Second Term or no Second Term  . . . . Soludo has been serving Nigeria with all his might

There is no need demonising the man.

The President should appoint whoever he likes from June onwards

If capitalization was the solution, I wonder what happened to citi and wachovia?

The only things that saved Nigeria from the financial mess is that we are minimally coupled to the global financial system, and our economy is so bad that even a recession couldn't make it any worse.

and I guess our economy was destroyed in the last four years?

You still have not told me why we should take you more seriously than the Finance Minister Dr Mansur Muhktar

mikeansy:

and I guess our economy was destroyed in the last four years?

You still have not told me why we should take you more seriously than the Finance Minister Dr Mansur Muhktar

It seems you did not read (or comprehend) what you posted. The comments were made by the president and not the minster!
Like I said in the other thread, I am not interested in your opinion of me - weigh the argument and not the man. Doing so is evidence of being educated, and not just being learned or lettered.

OK folks

It looks like nairaland has a new IMF.

The Minister of Finance speaking while representing the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria is no longer credible !!!

Oya over to you Mikeansy, respond.

Governor Soludo has done
creditably well. when comparing him
with all the past CBN administrators.
He is super fantastic.
all ye haters should face reality.
we know som of u were affected
negatively by the re-capitalization exercise.

Why do people keep on saying someone has done a great job and yet fail to list exactly what he has done that is great

Nigerians need to learn to objectively evaluate politicians and political appointees, and not just echo the sentiments of others.

biina:

Why do people keep on saying someone has done a great job and yet fail to list exactly what he has done that is great

Nigerians need to learn to objectively evaluate politicians and political appointees, and not just echo the sentiments of others.

Ok Biina. .  . I'm gonna help you!
I 'm going to bore you out by listing 10 great things Soludo did!

1)Banking ConSOULDOtion
The banking consoludotion is the best thing that ever happened to the Nigerian economy. The concept and implementation of the Soludo's strategy is going to be studied in universities and top class economic institutions worldwide for ages to come.

2) Increase in loan/credit ratio.
Loans/Credits given to Nigerians have risen from 1.1 trillion Naira before Soludo to above 7 trillion Naira as at last year. That's an outstanding increase by whatever measurement.

3) Strengthening of our Local banks
Pre-soludo, the 89 banks in Nigeria put together were smaller than the 4th largest South African Bank (I think Nedbank). Post-Soludo, any of our top five banks singularly can compete favorably with NedBank and other big banks.

4) Exchange rate stabilization
For the first time in almost 30 years, Nigeria witnessed a strengthening of the Naira against major currencies for a large part of Soludo's tenure. The recent decline is global and cuts across all countries, hence cannot be faulted on Soludo. This happened in less than 5 years.

5)Fastest Growing banks in The world.
Nigerian banks have moved from oblivion to becoming the fastest growing banks in the world. All this is as a result of a carefully crafted policy implememtation orchestrated by General Soludo. We now have 5 banks in the top 500 worldwide.

6)Micro Finance banking.
By Soludo's design, Micro finance banks have lit the Nigerian landscape and are dishing out loans to the poor. This in itself serves as a massive economic stimulant for the nation.

7) Jobs, Jobs ,Jobs.
Pre-Soludo(Banking Jobs)-Probably Less than 30,000.
Post-Soludo(Banking Jobs)- Over 100,000 and much more to come.

FSS 2020 Strategy.
If you read with understanding Soludo's FSS 2020 strategy, you'll be awed. But I'll permit you if you can't understand it, as only those that understand the theory of development would appreciate the strategic design of that document.

9)African Finance Corporation.
Although, it has been slowed down by YarAdua, this is another of Soludo's feats in the making.

10)Finally, but there are many, many more.
The spread of Nigerian banks across the world. Starting with Africa, Nigerian banks are going global and moving into Europe and America.
Just a reminder- Pre Soludo there was no real, strong and operational Nigerian Bank outside our shores. Now the list of nations is endless. UK, US, Cayman Islands, South Africa, throughtout West Africa, Rwanda, and a host of other countries.

But for space, I wouldn't mention the growth in the use of ATMs from less than a million cards pre-Soludo to over 45 million cards last year, or the numerous awards Nigerian banks have garnered internationally, or the preservation/accumulation of our largest Foreign reserves ever for use on a rainy day like today.

Hey Biina. the list is endless but I don't wanna bore you out already.

PapaBrowne:

Ok Biina. .  . I'm gonna help you!
I 'm going to bore you out by listing 10 great things Soludo did!

its far from a bore. It is beneficial when people support their assertions with evidence rather than echo the plaudits offered by others.

1)Banking ConSOULDOtion
The banking consoludotion is the best thing that ever happened to the Nigerian economy. The concept and implementation of the Soludo's strategy is going to be studied in universities and top class economic institutions worldwide for ages to come.

what has the consolidation of banks positively done for the Nigerian economy or populace? All it has essentially done is a replaced several banks with a few, and that in itself is neither positive or negative. For best results, mergers and acquisitions should be driven by the market and not regulatory forces.

2) Increase in loan/credit ratio.
Loans/Credits given to Nigerians have risen from 1.1 trillion Naira before Soludo to above 7 trillion Naira as at last year. That's an outstanding increase by whatever measurement.

The value you gave is not the loan to deposit ratio (or any ratio for that matter) and is likely just the amount of credit being provided by the banking sector.
Given that the amount of liability (basically loans) a bank can have is proportional to the paid up capital, the x7 increases in loan is well short of the 12.5x increase in minimum capitalization i.e. the banks have raised capital but have insufficient opportunities to invest it. Unfortunately, shareholders are not so patient on returns.
That it self is not the worst, the real question is the soundness of the financial instruments, as more banks are relying on the stock market and round tripping to stay in the black.

3) Strengthening of our Local banks
Pre-soludo, the 89 banks in Nigeria put together were smaller than the 4th largest South African Bank (I think Nedbank). Post-Soludo, any of our top five banks singularly can compete favorably with NedBank and other big banks.

Compete with which banks and in what? Other countries patronize their own banks, and you will not be winning major customers outside of Nigeria. The size of a bank should reflect the size of a nation's economy. Having  a few big banks without the associated big economy is a liability, as shareholders expect returns on their investments.

4) Exchange rate stabilization
For the first time in almost 30 years, Nigeria witnessed a strengthening of the Naira against major currencies for a large part of Soludo's tenure. The recent decline is global and cuts across all countries, hence cannot be faulted on Soludo. This happened in less than 5 years.

Please read up on currency management and the history of the exchange rates before you make such assertions. Exchange rates have been pegged at far better values in the past.
Under free market, the exchange rate is governed by the demand vs supply for forex, which is in turn dependent on the import to export ratio. The mirage you felt was a gain was a reflection of the high crude oil prices, and thus with the fall in oil prices, your currency tumbles with it.

5)Fastest Growing banks in The world.
Nigerian banks have moved from oblivion to becoming the fastest growing banks in the world. All this is as a result of a carefully crafted policy implememtation orchestrated by General Soludo. We now have 5 banks in the top 500 worldwide.

Any evidence to support your claims? Any country that raises its minimum capitalization can get banks into the top 500. It says nothing about the health of said banks or the associated economy. You don't believe me, you can ask the share holders of wachovia bank or the citi group.

6)Micro Finance banking.
By Soludo's design, Micro finance banks have lit the Nigerian landscape and are dishing out loans to the poor. This in itself serves as a massive economic stimulant for the nation.

Soludo is simply reinventing the wheel. Formal micro finance institutions have existed in Nigeria since independence, under names such as Rural Banking Programme, the Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme (ACGS), the Nigerian Agricultural and Co-operative Bank (NACB), the Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC), the Peoples Bank of Nigeria (PBN), the Community Banks (CBs), and the Family Economic Advancement Programme (FEAP).

7) Jobs, Jobs ,Jobs.
Pre-Soludo(Banking Jobs)-Probably Less than 30,000.
Post-Soludo(Banking Jobs)- Over 100,000 and much more to come.

Evidence? The mergers have actually reduced jobs as redundant functions (e.g HR and IT) of merged entities were pruned. The banking sector has the highest staff turnover in Nigeria, and thus do not use the employment rate as a sole criteria for estimating the growth of the sector.

FSS 2020 Strategy.
If you read with understanding Soludo's FSS 2020 strategy, you'll be awed. But I'll permit you if you can't understand it, as only those that understand the theory of development would appreciate the strategic design of that document.

A theoretical framework whose practicality are yet to be substantiated.

9)African Finance Corporation.
Although, it has been slowed down by YarAdua, this is another of Soludo's feats in the making.

Nothing new - African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), the African Reinsurance Corporation (AfricaRe) and the African Development Bank (AfDB). They usually fail to live up to expectation as theyare like putting the cart before without the horse.

10)Finally, but there are many, many more.
The spread of Nigerian banks across the world. Starting with Africa, Nigerian banks are going global and moving into Europe and America.
Just a reminder- Pre Soludo there was no real, strong and operational Nigerian Bank outside our shores. Now the list of nations is endless. UK, US, Cayman Islands, South Africa, throughtout West Africa, Rwanda, and a host of other countries.

Wrong. Two examples:
1. First Bank opened a branch in London in 1982, and got its UK license in 2002 which led to the establishment of its subsidiary, FBN Bank (UK).
2. UBA opened its New york and Cayman island branches in 1984 and 1987 respectively.
The likes of standard chartered had always had foreign affiliations

But for space, I wouldn't mention the growth in the use of ATMs from less than a million cards pre-Soludo to over 45 million cards last year, or the numerous awards Nigerian banks have garnered internationally, or the preservation/accumulation of our largest Foreign reserves ever for use on a rainy day like today.

The popularity of ATM cards is due to the penetration of technology and not the effect of any policy on the part of the CBN, else you might as well associate the proliferation of laptops and internet access to the CBN as well.

I do concede to you the fact that he manged to maintain a high level of foreign reserve during the oil price hike. While one can argue about the pros and cons of  maintaining a huge foreign reserve (as its essentially money tied down in someone else economy), it is still commendable that he achieved such given the level of greed of the average Nigerian politicians who would like nothing less than to get their hands on the said funds.

@Biina
I must admit, I underestimated ur intellectual capacity,assumed you are a layman, so I kind of stated my points on a weak platform, so u've appeared to have nailed them with ur response.

On the real, How do you assess performance?
You'll judge either based on actions on the Job description, Peer Review Mechanism or on a much higher level, you'd assess performance based on innovativeness and ability to turn theoretical representations into implemented realities.

Based on all four criteria for assessing performance, Soludo has an oustanding record.
First, his job description simply put includes Issuance of Legal tender (Money), Management of external reserves,maintenance of monetary stability(Inflation control), The Federal Government's bank, and finally Lender of last resort to our commercial banks.
Based on the Job description stated, you cannot fault Soludo. Infact, he out performed.

Secondly, using peer review mechanism, his predecessors are no match in any way and I wouldn't want to argue that because it is so obvious.
If you want to take it further and compare him with other Central Bank Governors worldwide, you'd definitely find him in the top tier. He was given an award to that effect by a reputable organization not too long ago.

On Innovation, his theories are not only original, they are micro targeted to the specific needs of the Nigerian economy.

And finally, and this is the single fact that distinguishes him from the rest. He designs a theory that looks impossible on paper, pushes it through all the hoops associated with the Nigerian system and implements it successfully. Only then do the skeptics start coming on board.
Very few thought the consolidation would be a success, very few thought any banks would be able to beat the deadline. But today we have the results.

Soludo,I must conclude is the best thing that has happened to the Nigerian economy ever.

Honestly speaking, This is the best education I ve gotten from Nairaland courtsey of papabrowne and biina.

Both of you are very intelligent.

I tell you, those are good contributions.

this is the essence of criticism. It helps a whole lot in the evaluation process.

biina and papa browne
u guys av enliten us economically
wit these constructive nd calculated analysis
i sincerely would recommend u both 4 d job of CBN governor
and Finance Minister.
all the best!

folks not just the analysis

please do well to listen to the man speak on his own records through the youtube links above.

let all those who love our country be courageous enough to stand up for that which is for the greater good

Nigeria is bigger than any lobby group.

biina:

 what has the consolidation of banks positively done for the Nigerian economy or populace? All it has essentially done is a replaced several banks with a few

I wish to respond to few of your comments. Bank consolidation has helped replace several banks with low capital base with a few big banks spread over African countries and Europe. In London alone, we have Access bank, GTB, Intercont Bank, Zenith Bank courtesy of Soludo consolidation exercise. Zenith Bank, London branch  made £3.6m profit in 2008 and you understand what this means to Nigerian economy, more capital, more investable funds, more jobs eg VISA fone by Zenith, XCEL Logistics, UBA, Oceanic Bank, growing football talents and much more. Nigerian banks are spreading like wild fire.

In terms of loan,  I will not support the issuance of loan to anyone without good or known credit rating. A good risk analyst will never support that except if you have collateral. I celebrated the signing of credit data management pact last week by Nigerian top banks to share credit information managed by a reputable data management coy. This is a major feat.

biina:

Other countries patronize their own banks, and you will not be winning major customers outside of Nigeria. The size of a bank should reflect the size of a nation's economy. Having  a few big banks without the associated big economy is a liability, as shareholders expect returns on their investments.
Under free market, the exchange rate is governed by the demand vs supply for forex, which is in turn dependent on the import to export ratio.

Winning customers is a gradual process venture. Most of the banks in top 40 list in the world have been in existence for over 100years. You do not expect to see all the results of Souldo's policies in two years. I have spoken with hundreds of Africans who have expressed strong confidence in Nigerian banking industry. Their love for Intercontinental, Zenith and Bank PHB is unimaginable, courtsey of CNN adverts.

biina:

Under free market, the exchange rate is governed by the demand vs supply for forex, which is in turn dependent on the import to export ratio.

Thank you, do you still blame Soludo on this?? Briefly, Nigerian bankers are the genesis of forex problem Nigeria is facing today. A banker offered to issue me a return ticket to UK if he uses my passport for FOREX transaction. According to him, he makes 60thousand naira profit for each transaction. I want to believe this is not Soludo's fault if you really understand where I am coming from. High import volume and bankers' nefarious activities is the major problem with our FOREX market.

biina:

1. Soludo is simply reinventing the wheel. Formal micro finance institutions have existed in Nigeria since independence, under names such as Rural Banking Programme, the Agricultural Credit Guarantee Scheme (ACGS), the Nigerian Agricultural and Co-operative Bank (NACB), the Nigerian Agricultural Insurance Corporation (NAIC), the Peoples Bank of Nigeria (PBN), the Community Banks (CBs), and the Family Economic Advancement Programme (FEAP).

1. I disagree with you. I advise you read through his regulatory framework.
In 1982, Bank of England introduced Monetary Policies, American stocks outsold theirs, further strenghtening their financial institutions to compete favourably with American stocks. ACGS, NACB, NAIC, PBN, CBs, FEAP as you mentioned needed strong policies cum regulations which Soludo did.

FUNCTIONS OF CENTRAL BANK
*Responsible for the monetary policy of a country  *Lend money to other banks in times of need  *Maintain the stability of the national currency and money supply *Controlling subsidized-loan interest rates, and acting as a lender of last resort to the banking sector

I will appreciate if you explain his failure to deliver in the above mentioned duties and responsibilities

PapaBrowne:

@Biina
I must admit, I underestimated ur intellectual capacity,assumed you are a layman, so I kind of stated my points on a weak platform, so u've appeared to have nailed them with ur response.

On the real, How do you assess performance?
You'll judge either based on actions on the Job description, Peer Review Mechanism or on a much higher level, you'd assess performance based on innovativeness and ability to turn theoretical representations into implemented realities.

Based on all four criteria for assessing performance, Soludo has an oustanding record.
First, his job description simply put includes Issuance of Legal tender (Money), Management of external reserves,maintenance of monetary stability(Inflation control), The Federal Government's bank, and finally Lender of last resort to our commercial banks.
Based on the Job description stated, you cannot fault Soludo. Infact, he out performed.

Secondly, using peer review mechanism, his predecessors are no match in any way and I wouldn't want to argue that because it is so obvious.
If you want to take it further and compare him with other Central Bank Governors worldwide, you'd definitely find him in the top tier. He was given an award to that effect by a reputable organization not too long ago.

On Innovation, his theories are not only original, they are micro targeted to the specific needs of the Nigerian economy.

And finally, and this is the single fact that distinguishes him from the rest. He designs a theory that looks impossible on paper, pushes it through all the hoops associated with the Nigerian system and implements it successfully. Only then do the skeptics start coming on board.
Very few thought the consolidation would be a success, very few thought any banks would be able to beat the deadline. But today we have the results.

Soludo,I must conclude is the best thing that has happened to the Nigerian economy ever.

Firstly, let me clarify that I am not saying that Soludo failed as CBN governor, but rather that he has done nothing to justify a second tenure in office. He had done no better and no worse than his predecessors. The fact that he has been more brazen in his approach is not a measure of performance, as it could be liken to deciding a debate on who shouts the loudest.

On assessing performance, your measures are wrongfully applied. The performance of the CBN governor is directly tied to the performance of the apex bank.
- To judge him on a job description is like evaluating the CEO or MD of a company based on his/her job description, and ignoring the profit and loss status of the company.
- Peer review is valid when the area in question is a distributed merit based field like in academia. After all, you would not evaluate the performance of the presidency based on the review of his fellow politicians? I would rather subscribe to a customer based review e.g. a better yard stick for  politicians and political appointees are the people they are meant to be serving.
- The ability to turn a theoretical representations into implemented realities is of little value if the contribution of such is not deem positive.

All that being said, I will humor you for a while

1. Unless you have details of his defined job description, I do not see how you reached the conclusion that he has met (and even exceeded) the requirements. The functions that you defined above are the basic function of the Apex and is abstracted from the reality of the CBN.
- In the issuance of legal tender, Soludo like his predecessor has introduced a higher denomination in the naira. Empirical evidence has shown that higher denominations have only served  (in the least) to increase inflation rates in the  Nigerian economy. Another exercise on the monetary treadmill was his proposed revaluation of the naira.
- The management of external reserves is neither here nor their as it falls under the purview of hindsight is 20:20. Still, like I said earlier, it is creditable that he maintained the high level of reserves that he did even though one could argue against the advantages of doing so.
- Inflation control requires that the rate of inflation be pegged within bounds (usually 2-6%) and not be maintained at a stable high rate. Outside of the occasional slump and spike, inflation rate in Nigera has been in double digits (10-20%) for the most part of the last decade.

2. Peer review: who do you deem as his peers? The bank executives who are often willing to kiss the ass of any CBN governor just to stay in their good books; his fellow political appointees or the politicians who should be crucified for their high level of corruption and gross incompetence.
His fellow CBN governors have no incentives to constructively criticize him. Which apex bank has come out to say that the policies of Soludo are the reason for Nigeria being in a better position against his own economy. Their support (even if tacit) for him shows that he is not doing enough to improve our position in the global market place. People don't commend their competitors for doing well at their detriment
 
3. His policies should be evaluated on their merits and not just proposed objectives. We heard loftier claims when SAP was being introduced. One of the problems with Nigerian economic policy makers, including Soludo, is their lack of originality and almost fanatical attachment to programs based on the H-D model of capital dependence. Some argue that it has to to with our educational foundation, but I think it has more to do with a low intellectual self esteem - we feel the developed countries are always right and that their actions are always in our best interests. The developed countries will never sing your praises if your policies are truly targeted at bettering the lot of the Nigerian populace at the expense of whomever it may be.

4. Bringing a theoretical framework to practical fruition is in no way related to it having a positive or negative impact. The fact that skeptics get on board after the fact, is a bane of the Nigerian society, and has less to do with the pros outweighing the cons of the idea in question. Over the years, we are often found to be willing to adjust to the new disposition simply for selfish reasons and it does not speak for the righteousness of the position it self.

It is surprising (but I am not shocked) that you failed to mention a single problem that Soludo has solved given the myriad that ails Nigeria.
- The problem of the forex currency black market has been ailing Nigeria like a sore thumb, and Soludo, like his predecessors, has failed to bring it under control if not solve entirely
- The issue of lax supervision of the banks, including allegation of increased round tripping and prejudiced forex auctions
- The problem of speculative forex purchase as opposed to the DAS which has resulted in more pressure on the naira
- Poor corporate governance and the issuance of bad loans like the intercontinental saga
- The porous nature of the monetary circulatory system in Nigeria
- The over exposure of the Nigeria banks to the stock market and volatile instruments.

Even if you are not an economist, you should be able to evaluate from the stand point of the average man, what has improved in your lot in the past 5yrs, and ask how many of it are attributable to the CBN.

sadboi:

I wish to respond to few of your comments. Bank consolidation has helped replace several banks with low capital base with a few big banks spread over African countries and Europe. In London alone, we have Access bank, GTB, Intercont Bank, Zenith Bank courtesy of Soludo consolidation exercise. Zenith Bank, London branch  made £3.6m profit in 2008 and you understand what this means to Nigerian economy, more capital, more investable funds, more jobs eg VISA fone by Zenith, XCEL Logistics, UBA, Oceanic Bank, growing football talents and much more. Nigerian banks are spreading like wild fire.

Firstly, the capitalization of banks did not create foreign branches as  few Nigerian banks had already had branches in the US and the UK (please see earlier post) nor can you tie the profitability of a bank (or any company for that matter) to its asset value. Nigerian bank have always declared profits (even when distressed).

I have often observed that people view and argue capitalization from the wrong angle. There is nothing wrong in a bank having a huge capital base, as in the least, it makes it more robust and allows it to dabble into bigger projects. The issue is the minimum capitalization requirement, which essentially states that banks that don't meet it are not fit for existence. So the question is what is wrong with a bank being capitalized with less than N25B in Nigeria? Noting that even the US still has commercial banks with as little as $300M in total consolidated assets. Forcing banks to raise capital without the economy providing the needed opportunity to invest said capital will only force bank into shady trading and lending

Soludo was not the first to increase bank capitalization, rather it is an ever recurring process: N50 million in 1992, N500 million in 1997, N1 billion in 2000, N2 billion in Dec. 2004. Soludo made it N25 billion in Dec 2005. The uproar from bank executives was because he made an autocratic move in July 2004, requiring a huge increase (from N2B to N25B) within 18 months with total disregard fro the existing time line set by the previous CBN governor.

Increased capitalization of banks has never been (and will never be) the solution to our problem. Increased capitalization is like pumping water into a leaking tank, a pure waste of needed resources. Resources that could have been better invested in the manufacturing sector and cutting out the middle man i.e. bank

Winning customers is a gradual process venture. Most of the banks in top 40 list in the world have been in existence for over 100years. You do not expect to see all the results of Souldo's policies in two years. I have spoken with hundreds of Africans who have expressed strong confidence in Nigerian banking industry. Their love for Intercontinental, Zenith and Bank PHB is unimaginable, courtsey of CNN adverts.

While your assertion of speaking with hundreds of Africans is obviously an hyperbole, the expression of confidence has not been supported by evidence of new entrants into the banking sector. If the sector is as profitable as you make it sound, the direct consequence should be new entrants into the sector.

The truth is that there is no point in having a bank that is bigger than the associated economy. The banking sector services the economy, and the demands of it are in line with the size of the associated economy. Big banks do not make a big economy, rather it is the converse that is true i.e. a big economy makes big bank. A case in point is the capital raised for the GSM license, as the Nigerian banks rose to the occasion by syndicating the needed funds.

Thank you, do you still blame Soludo on this?? Briefly, Nigerian bankers are the genesis of forex problem Nigeria is facing today. A banker offered to issue me a return ticket to UK if he uses my passport for FOREX transaction. According to him, he makes 60thousand naira profit for each transaction. I want to believe this is not Soludo's fault if you really understand where I am coming from. High import volume and bankers' nefarious activities is the major problem with our FOREX market.

While the underlying problem is Nigeria poor trade balance i.e. heavy importation, which results in increased demand for forex, he does take a substantial portion of the blame. His move from the Dutch Auction System (DAS) where the banks could only buy forex from the CBN based on expressed demands and prior cash commitment of their customers, to an auction system which allows banks to buy forex based on the speculative demand of their customers, has resulted in an exaggerated demand for forex which has put more pressure on the Naira. It has also reopened the channels for banks to trade in forex and round tripping. The move only worsened a bad position.

The manufacturing and agricultural sectors should be prioritized in the allocation of funds instead of the outrageous $20,000 to every Nigerian for basic travel allowance when less than 1% of Nigerians earn $20,000 per annum. All this has done is open up channels for political looters and unscrupulous bankers.

The round tripping problem that was curbed during the sanusi regime, is now back with a bang. Your experience underscores this.

1. I disagree with you. I advise you read through his regulatory framework.
In 1982, Bank of England introduced Monetary Policies, American stocks outsold theirs, further strenghtening their financial institutions to compete favourably with American stocks. ACGS, NACB, NAIC, PBN, CBs, FEAP as you mentioned needed strong policies cum regulations which Soludo did.

Over the years we have learnt from our mistakes and have often tried to fine tune the micro-finance policies with each successive iteration (as expected) being better than the last . Soludo's MFI is just another iteration. My point was that it is an evolutionary (and not a revolutionary) step - it was not the first and it won't be the last.
In fact the major step in micro finance evolution in Nigeria can be said to have occurred in the 1990's with the introduction of the community banks, which decentralized the system and gave room for more active  private participation.

FUNCTIONS OF CENTRAL BANK
*Responsible for the monetary policy of a country  *Lend money to other banks in times of need  *Maintain the stability of the national currency and money supply *Controlling subsidized-loan interest rates, and acting as a lender of last resort to the banking sector

I will appreciate if you explain his failure to deliver in the above mentioned duties and responsibilities

Please see post above.
If one used such broad strokes in evaluating CBN governors, then one would come to the conclusion that they have all done exceedingly well - an assessment that is so far from being right, that its almost right.

The CBN has always failed to live up to expectation in its supervisory role, and it might be better if the two segments are made independent, although then we risk their being incongruent.