Wema Bank plans N19.7bn Tier 2 capital

Wema Bank Plc plans to raise N19.7bn ($100m) in fresh Tier 2 capital in a bid to position itself for growth after obtaining a national banking licence from the Central Bank of Nigeria last week.

The CBN had granted Wema Bank an approval to convert its licence from a regional bank to a national bank. The nation oldest indigenous lender, in a statement, said it would embark on the proposed capital raising exercise during the first quarter of next year.

Speaking on the plan, the Chief Executive Officer, Wema Bank, Mr. Segun Oloketuyi, was quoted as saying, “To ensure that this approval is leveraged appropriately, we are already in the process of raising (N19.7bn) $100m in Tier 2 capital and will commence a Tier 1 capital raise in Q1 2016.