National Investment Bank (NIB) says beginning from next month it would embark on a recapitalization drive to raise a minimum of GHC250 million through private placements mainly targeted at development financing agencies on the international market. Managing Director of the Bank, Percival A. Kuranchie disclosed this at a special thanksgiving service at the banks head office to mark its Golden Jubilee Anniversary, which falls this year. He later told journalists the drive begun about a year ago and was suspended due to a few challenges the bank faced, but shareholders have given the green light again for it to be revived so the bank has already commissioned NTHC (National Trust Holding Company) as the investment advisers for the recapitalization drive. The NIB Boss said the kind of financial muscle the bank requires for its recapitalization cannot be provided by any local financial institution and that is why the drive is targeted at international agencies, which have development finance as their orientation. “We are originally a development bank and our main strength is in construction and project financing. The kind of money we are looking for can only be given on long-term basis. We can’t use customers’ short-term deposits for recapitalization so we are looking at the international market,” he said. “Already the bank is well positioned for the forward march but when additional capitalization comes we shall jump to the forefront of the financial industry in Ghana,” the MD said. He assured prospective investors who would take advantage of the private placement of the bank’s recapitalization that the venture would be profitable financially and also rewarding in terms of contribution to Ghana’s development. Mr. Kuranchie said recapitalization would focus more on improving the long-term project financing role of the bank and also to improve the quality of its service rather than a ‘brick and mortar’ branch expansion. Recently, NIB was hit with a US$90million judgment debt for UK-based Dominion Corporate Trustees Limited on account of failure to meet the terms of a promissory note issued to by NIB’s former MD to Dominion allegedly without the approval of the board. Mr. Kuranchie said in spite of the court ruling, NIB believes strongly it had solid evidence to prove the bank was rather defrauded so it is heading for Court of Appeals, and he is confidence their case would be upheld and they would not have to pay that judgment debt. He assured a gathering of the bank’s workers, old staff members, corporate clients, board members and shareholders that NIB will not fail where others failed, adding that, “throughout our challenges we have developed resilient strategies to survive every turmoil and we shall live and grow and continue to support the development of this country.” The NIB Boss recalled that in 2011 the bank’s profit stood at GHC7million but last year profits grew more than 50% to GHC11million plus, saying that was a clear sign that the bank is marching forward and never backwards, in spite of the many challenges. At 50 years old the NIB boasts of having played a major role in the formation and growth of several corporate entities in Ghana, supplied top level human resource to the central bank and several other top banks in the country, and it continues to support scores of businesses across country. Mr. Kuranchie said, for the most of the companies it supported, it was through either equity or debt financing, adding that it continues to own shares in lots of them, but have sold it shares in others. NIB was established on March 22, 1963 as the first development bank in Ghana to promote and strengthen rapid industrialization in all sectors of the Ghanaian economy. With 27 branches nationwide, NIB now operates as a universal bank with a focus on development/commercial banking activities.