FAQ

(a) Licence procurement
* Obtain CAC name reservation certificate for the proposed bank or finance institution.
* Prepare a Feasibility Report (Business Plan) on the proposed institution.
* Prepare draft Memorandum & Articles of Association of the company in formation.
* Prepare a complete set of Manuals of Operations
* Produce draft application documents for promoters/directors’ signature.
* Follow up work at the Central Bank of Nigeria
* Respond to any issues raised by the CBN on the application

(b) Recruitment of Management Team
* Advertise vacancies in a national daily newspaper after submission of an application for banking licence to CBN.
* Aptitude test for invited candidates to reduce the number to be interviewed.
* An oral discussion with each of the applicants.
* The interview exercise may take one or two days in the town where the bank is to be located.

(c) Induction Course
Induction course (two days for board of directors/five days for staff before commencement of operations designed to enlighten and sensitise the directors and staff of the newly established bank on the principles of banking business/operational methodology, regulatory/supervisory framework as well as strategies to be adopted in policy development and the effective management oversight.

(d) Work plan/Project implementation timeline
* Carry out amarket survey and research within the catchment area of the proposed institution/bank – (from 2 days to two weeks, depending on size of institution).
* Obtain Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) name reservation for the proposed institution – one week.
* Prepare a Feasibility Report after market survey – between one week and two weeks depending on size of institution
* Prepare draft Memorandum & Articles of Association of the proposed institution.
* Develop Manuals of Operations, policies and procedures
* Promoters (shareholders to transfer capital contributions to the account of principal shareholder, who in turn, transfers electronically via NEFT/RTGS the stipulated minimum capital deposit to CBN
* After one week or two weeks of receipt of the full range of the stipulated application documents the Consultant submits application to the Central Bank of Nigeria for approval-in-principle (AIP).

* While awaiting the AIP:
* advertise in a daily national newspaper for suitably qualified candidates to fill the top Management positions and operational staff and carry out the recruitment exercise three weeks later
* Issue letters of offer of employment to top management and staff of the new institution.
* Procure and install an appropriate Information Technology (IT) platform.
* After obtaining CBN’s AIP and procurement of CAC incorporation documents , full banking licence – 2 months
* One week induction training programme for Management Team/staff on operational issues and strategies and two days induction training for Directors to give them appropriate exposure for their oversight roles and to properly equip them on key bank management issues.

(e) Financial Requirements: New financial institutions seeking Central Bank of Nigeria authorization are required to meet the stipulated minimum statutory capital as indicated below. However, for existing institutions (items 1 to 3), the compliance deadline for the new capital directive is from 1st April 2024 to March 31, 2026.

Bureau de Change firms’ date for commencement of operation has not been fixed. Update on other financial institutions capital requirement is available from CBN website.

(f) Consultancy Fees
Our licence procurement charges are easily affordable and payment terms are on pro-rata basis according to service delivery