Lucidum Finance gets CBN’s nod

Ahead of full-fledged operations, Lucidum Finance Company – a company that promises to “recalibrate the ethos of customer-centric service delivery in the nation’s financial services industry” has obtained an Approval In Principle (AIP) from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The AIP confirms Lucidum Finance’s completion of pre-licensing and fulfilment of the CBN Revised Guidelines for Finance Companies in Nigeria requirements, including the submission of all specified documentation – which will ultimately lead to the issuance of a final approval to commence business.

This approval is a significant step and successful milestone for Lucidum Finance which was conceptualized in mid-2023. The Finance Company is now able to proceed with the incorporation of the company with its pioneer Board of Directors as approved by the CBN.

The pioneer Board comprises of five accomplished professionals with a combined wealth of experience spanning more than 120 years.

The Board will be chaired by accomplished realtor and businessman: Dr. Samson Efuwape Agbato - Principal Partner at Samson Agbato Consulting (SAC), a leading firm of Estate Surveyors and Valuers based in Lagos. A Fellow of the Nigerian Institution of Estate Surveyors and Valuers (NIESV) and consummate real estate consultant, researcher, author, and public speaker; Agbato received his Bachelor's, Master's, and Doctor of Philosophy degrees in Estate Management from the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile Ife, Osun State.

Also on the board is Mr. Lekan Sanusi, Lucidum Finance’s pioneer Managing Director - an erudite Economist and Banker. Sanusi is the Founder of Bancor Group - a Finance, Consulting, Real Estate, and Investment Management group based in Lagos. He is an experienced executive business leader with over 33 years of extensive and incisive exposure to the national, regional and international financial markets – over 17 years of which were spent in executive management (CEO) roles in three commercial banks in West and East Africa. Until recently, he was CEO/Managing Director of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) Uganda. Prior to his stint in Kampala, he led GTBank Ghana and GTBank Gambia as CEO/Managing Director of both banks. He was once the Chief Economist at the Nigerian LNG Limited and has sat on several boards cutting across key sectors, namely: financial services (banking, insurance), manufacturing, real estate, arts & culture, and agriculture.

An Honorary Member of the Chartered Institute of Bankers Nigeria (CIBN), Sanusi holds a First-Class honours degree in Economics, a Master’s degree in Economics, and a Master’s degree (with distinction) in Money, Banking & Finance. He is a British Chevening Scholar (1996/97), and also the winner of the Chancellor’s Prize as the best all-round graduating student at the Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ogun State (1989).

Other members of the CBN-approved pioneer Board for Lucidum Finance are Messrs. Taiwo Sowole, Ademola Fajobi, and Ademisola Sanusi.

Sowole is an Economist, Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) and Managing Partner of Taiwo Sowole & Co, a Lagos-based Accounting and Tax Advisory firm.

Fajobi is an Economist and Banker who served for several years in Sterling Bank and its legacy institutions in various key functional areas.

Ademisola Sanusi is a Law graduate of Lancaster University in the United Kingdom (UK) who also holds a postgraduate qualification in Law (LLM) from the University of Buckingham, UK.

A press statement by Lucidum Finance noted that “The foresight and resilience of the team have brought Lucidum Finance to this milestone. By taking a strategic, long-term view of the inherent opportunities, risks, and challenges in the operating environment, members of the pioneer board seek to plug the gaps in service delivery in the finance companies' sub-segment of the Nigerian financial services industry and are positioned to make a difference.

“In tandem with the corporate character and visionary ideals of this nascent financial institution, the pioneer board of Lucidum Finance is very aware that fulfilling the apex bank’s AIP conditions and subsequent smooth commencement of operations will require focus, diligence, discipline, and the robust application of their professional, intellectual, and ethical governance capabilities.”