The Central Bank of The Gambia announced on 9 August that Bank PHB (Gambia) Limited has been taken over by Keystone Bank Nigeria Limited with effect from 6 August 2011, although it did not advance any reason for the sudden takeover, whose announcement came as a surprise to many.
Bank PHB Nigeria Limited, the parent company of Bank PHB in The Gambia, is one of the three banks that are at the brink of collapsed as a result the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has revoked there banking licenses.
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| Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Lamido Sanusi |
The revocation of the banking licenses of Bank PHB, Afribank, and Spring Bank came as the CBN firmly believes that the three banks will not able to meet the September 30 deadline given to them to recapitalise.
The CBN stated: “Those three banks could not have met the deadline for the recapitalisation of the banks. Since the banks could not have met the deadline, there was no point in prolonging the situation.”
Following the revocation of their licences, the Nigerian government through the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), announced it had taken over the three banks by incorporating what it calls Bridge Bank to temporarily take control of the banks.
