From Uche Usim, Abuja
Frontline Primary Mortgage Institution (PMI), AG Mortgage Bank Plc (AGMB) has expanded its operations and product offerings, urging investors to be part of its success story by availing themselves of its shares directly or from the secondary market.
It advised investors to exploit its attractive return on investment and be part of the bank’s impressive output for 15 years running.
The bank’s shares are currently listed on NASD Plc, a securities exchange registered by the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) to perform the functions of an over-the- counter (OTC) market in the securities of unquoted public companies.
Speaking at a forum with investors, land owners, developers and contractors, real estate players, corporate organisations, individuals and cooperative societies recently in Abuja, the Managing Director/CEO of AGMB Plc, Mr. Ngozi Anyogu urged investors to avail themselves of the shares of the company directly or from the secondary market.
Describing AGMB Plc as a financial institution of note duly licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) as a National Mortgage Bank to undertake mortgage banking and related services nationwide, he stated that it currently operates through a number of retail outlets grouped under three regional offices in Lagos (West), Enugu (East) and Abuja (North)
Listing some of its product offerings, Anyogu said AGMB is into residential and commercial mortgage as well as construction finance, among others, stressing that investment or partnership with the bank is attested to be highly rewarding.
Anyogu, who reeled off the bank’s solid achievements in the past 15 years of operations via a power point presentation, noted that its Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) of over 24 per cent is in excess of the 10 per cent prescribed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
Inviting investors and depositors to exploit AGMB’S track record of performance, he recalled that the bank which is today among the first three in the country started in 2005 with a seed capital of N200 million from Assemblies of God ministers.
Explaining that the forum with AGMB’s customers, partners and investors was designed to compare notes in a bid to put the bank on a more solid footing.
He noted that AGMB Plc was privileged to have an eight-member board of directors.
With an authorised share capital of N5 billion, asset base in excess of N16 billion, 43 per cent liquidity and shareholders fund standing at N5.5 billion, Anyogu said the bank is on a strong footing.
According to him, the bank has so far undertaken mortgage finance worth over N1 billion, executed in 133 construction financing worth over N2.3 billion as well as 599 National Housing Fund (NHF) worth N5 billion.
Noting that AGMB’s business goals and objectives include making mortgages affordable to medium income earners and first time home buyers, he stated that its vision statement is to consistently create value to stakeholders by providing excellent services through creative and caring employees using appropriate technology application in a first class ambience.
The AGMB CEO listed some deposit types in the bank as high-end, short term and long term deposits as well as corporate accounts and savings
Anyogu said AGMB improves the quality of loan portfolio by maintaining what he described as “match your loan rates to top quality borrowers.”
He expressed delight it has one of the most experienced board of directors in the country as well as a strong management team that is second to none, adding that the board is a mixture of the old and young breed.
The old breed, which he jocularly described as BBC (Born Before the Computer). the mix, he noted, is borne out of the quest to tap from the wisdom of the old and the vibrancy of the young.
On his projection for the bank in the next five years, Anyogu said he expects it ‘to be the leading mortgage bank in Nigeria and Africa.”
He noted that the bank was engaging in accurate database and robust means of loan repayment collections, adding that it is one of the accredited and listed mortgage institutions on the Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company (NMRC) platform.
On impediments to Nigeria’s mortgage sector, he listed them as the Land Use Act, foreclosure laws, repayment/collection mechanism, absence of an accurate national database of applicants, individual per capita income, and government intervention funds.
AGMB Plc was incorporated on July 21, 2004 as a private limited liability company and obtained mortgage banking licence from the CBN in December 2004, but commenced business in January 2005 as a Primary Mortgage Bank (PMB).
AGMB, which is rated as one of the top 10 players in the nation’s mortgage sector had in May 2015, changed its name from AG Homes Savings & Loans Plc to AG Mortgage Bank Plc.
