The Managing Director and Chief Executive of the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), Umaru Ibrahim, on Tuesday stressed the need for effective collaboration between regulators and operators in the banking system for enforcement of sound ethical standards and professionalism in the banking industry.
A statement issued by the corporation’s Head, Communications and Public Affairs, Mohammed Kudu Ibrahim, indicated that the NDIC boss made the call when the Executive members of the Chartered Institute of Bankers (CIBN) led by the President and Chairman of Council, Dr. Uche Olowu, paid him a courtesy in Abuja.
Ibrahim lamented that instances of abuse of extant regulations and ethical standards impacted negatively on the confidence in the banking industry and the entire financial system in general.
For instance, he cited the recent involvement of some deposit money banks (DMBs) in illegal forex transfers as a wake-up call for better corporate governance and ethical behaviour by the banks.
Ibrahim assured the CIBN President of the corporation’s readiness to strengthen collaboration with the institute in the enforcement of good corporate governance among banks as well as the promotion of high ethical standards and professionalism.
This is even as he also stressed that it was the primary responsibility of regulators to uphold strict compliance with international best practices and ethical standards in order to promote effective risk management and sound corporate governance in the banking industry.
According to him, this is in line with the corporation’s drive towards protecting depositors and enhancing public confidence in the financial system.
Earlier in his remarks, the President and Chairman of Council of the CIBN, Dr. Uche Olowu attested to the recognition of the NDIC Academy by the International Association of Deposit Insurers (IADI) as a world class institution in providing capacity building for the banking industry.
He noted that the recognition and the CIBN’s active collaboration with the corporation to entrench ethical standards were key drivers towards effective service delivery in the industry.
Olowu harped further on the need to extend the collaborative efforts to joint research and knowledge-based events to enhance public awareness about the role of deposit insurance in financial system stability.
According to him, the active participation of the NDIC in the activities of the CIBN Council as well as its role in the nation’s economic development informed the Council’s visit to formally invite the NDIC boss as a special guest and resource person at the CIBN 11th Annual Banking and Finance Conference
