Chairman of Fidelity Bank Nigeria, Mustafa Chike-Obi, has announced that the banking community will soon release its official stance on the contentious windfall tax imposed by Nigeria’s federal government.
Chike-Obi communicated this through a tweet on Friday, stating that personal views expressed by some bank chairmen do not represent the collective position of the banking community.
In his tweet, Chike-Obi stated, “I have read the personal views of some bank chairmen on the windfall tax issue. Those views do not represent the banking community.”
To address the issue comprehensively, he revealed that the Bank Directors Association of Nigeria (BDAN) would hold a board meeting on August 12 to discuss the windfall tax and other pressing concerns affecting the banking sector.
Following this meeting, Chike-Obi assured that BDAN would communicate its views on the windfall tax and other critical issues concerning the banking community.
This announcement comes amidst recent statements from other prominent banking figures expressing their personal opinions on the tax.
Notably, Chairman of FBN Holdings, Femi Otedola, and Chairman of UBA, Tony Elumelu, have both voiced support for the windfall tax.
Otedola, a billionaire businessman, argued that the tax would promote a fairer economic environment by redistributing extraordinary gains to fund essential public services like infrastructure development, education, healthcare, and public welfare initiatives.
Otedola highlighted the extravagant spending by Nigerian banks, mentioning that they spend an estimated $50 million annually on maintaining private jets, with over $500 million invested in purchasing nine private jets by four banks.
He asserted that this level of extravagance erodes public trust in financial institutions and underscored the importance of redistributing wealth to benefit broader society.
Similarly, Elumelu supported the windfall tax, framing it as a measure aimed at alleviating poverty, adding the need to “democratise prosperity for Nigerians,” to ensuring equitable access to a good life for all citizens.
These statements followed a government meeting held on Wednesday with banking sector representatives, led by Elumelu and FCMB’s GCEO Ladi Balogun, to discuss the windfall tax.
Finance Minister Wale Edun described the meeting as “amicable, knowledge-based, and data-driven,” noting that President Bola Tinubu was actively engaged in the discussions.
As the banking community awaits the official position from BDAN, the debate over the windfall tax continues to draw varied responses from key industry stakeholders, reflecting the complexities and differing perspectives within Nigeria’s financial sector.
