Shareholders and investors have raised their hopes for enhanced business and profitability, as DEAP Capital Management and Trust Plc, appointed Jacob Oyebola Esan as the new managing director/chief executive officer.
Esan, until his recent appointment was the executive director, investment banking and public sector with responsibility for business origination as well as designing and implementing the growth strategy based on the vision of the company.
His appointment followed a consensus of the newly elected board members of the company led by Adelani Kehinde Oniwinde who now serves as the Chairman of the financial services Company, while Muhammad Murtala Aliyu, was elected Vice Chairman. Other members include William Oruka Odudu, and Cecilia Ekanem Maduekwe.
Oniwinde holds a doctorate (PhD) in Business Management from Belford University, USA, as well as a Masters in Business Administration. He is a Fellow of the Chartered Insurance Institute of London. He retired at the level of the Vice Executive Chairman of Niger Insurance Plc.
The Vice Chairman, Muhammad Murtala Aliyu, has served the federal Republic of Nigeria in several capacities including that of the Minister of State for Power and Steel (2001 to 2002). He was a member, Governing Council, Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, Bauchi. He is fellow of the Nigerian institute of Quantity Surveyors (FNIQS).
The Senior Independent Director, Odudu is a past president of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV), Past President of Association of Professional Bodies of Nigeria (APBN), President, Kwara Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture. Odudu, holds a B.Sc. degree (Estate Management) from University of London (1968-U.K) and Master of Science (urban Land Appraisal) from College of Estate Management, University of Reading, UK (1972).
Cecilia EkanemMaduekwe, is current Company Secretary of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc. Madueke is a Lawyer and an experienced Company Secretary. She is well experienced in the corporate governance requirements for public companies and this experience will be crucial for the turnaround and future growth of the Company. She is a member of The Chartered Institute of Arbitration and graduated from the Nigerian law school 1987 where she qualified as a Barrister at Law. She attended the University of Buckingham, graduating in 1986. She worked at Mobil Oil Nigeria up till January 1989 before joining Royal Exchange Plc, where she served in various capacities from 1989 till October 2009 as Group Executive Director (ERM & CG).
The shareholders of the Company at an Extra-Ordinary General Meeting (EGM) held on Thursday, 6th August, 2015 at the Lagoon Restaurant in Lagos elected the new board members with a clear mandate of steering the company back to profitability. The board members immediately after the EGM retreated for a short meeting during which they made a choice of Jacob Esan as the new MD|CEO.
As part of the strategic turn-around plan the shareholders mandated the new Board of Directors negotiate with individual creditors and secure agreements for the conversion of non-bank debts to ordinary shares of company at a price to be determined by the directors and agreed with the creditors. The directors are also to restructure any part of the existing non-bank debts of the company that the creditors are unwilling to convert into ordinary shares in the company, into restructured deposits to be repaid out of the future cash flow of the company over a maximum period of three (3) years starting from January 2019.
The directors were further authorized to initiate and conclude discussions and negotiations with prospective investors to recapitalize the company through the raising of additional equity. Part of the process will also include entering into discussions with interested parties, company or companies, interested in any scheme of merger, acquisition or any combinations thereof.
The new board also received the authority of the shareholders to, if and when deemed necessary, raise additional capital whether by way of public offering, special/private placement, rights issue or other methods, through issuance of shares, global depository receipts, convertibles or non-convertibles, medium term notes, bonds and or any other instruments. The offering could be either a stand-alone or by way of a programme, in such tranches, series or proportions, at such coupon or interest rates within such maturity periods, and such terms and conditions including through a book building process or other process; all of which shall be as determined by the board of directors, subject to obtaining the approvals of the relevant regulatory authorities.
The shareholders who were quite pleased at the outcome of the meeting gave approval to the Board of Directors to appoint credible and competent professional advisers and take such steps as may be necessary to give effect to all the resolutions. The non-bank debts of the company stood at N2.46 Billion as at June 30, 2014. And there are very strong indications that the creditors are quite amenable to converting their debts to ordinary shares, a development that will clean out the books of the company and put it in good stead for enhanced business, profitability and growth.
HOPE MOSES-ASHIKE
