Advertisements
Spread the love

 

The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Governor, Olayemi Cardoso has revealed the person responsible for the establishment of the first Islamic Bank in Nigeria. According to the Governor, the introduction of Islamic Banks in Nigeria was spearheaded by an assistant pastor.

Cardoso disclosed this at a reception organized to honour the Secretary-General, Organization of Islamic Cooperation Arbitration Centre, Dr Umar Oseni at the weekend in Abuja.

Speaking at the event, the CBN Governor said, “It was now clear to Nigerians that the introduction of Islamic banks in Nigeria was not to Islamize the country. But for small and medium-scale businesses.

Cardoso, who was represented by the CBN Director of Legal Services, Kofo Salam-Alada, said more Shariah-compliant banks are being considered for approval. He said this is due to the immense benefits the bank has brought to Nigerians.

The Governor noted that Islamic banks like Jaiz, Tajj, and Alternate Bank have stood the test of time since their establishment.

“Some years back, the CBN started a journey for the introduction of the Islamic Banking and Financing in Nigeria.

“It came when a young man was appointed Governor of CBN. But most people never knew that the first person who spearheaded the journey was to be a pastor.

“He was also a part-time pastor when this journey started. So, it was never an attempt to Islamize Nigeria or Islamize financing in Nigeria. When the Prince (Emir Sanusi) came, he continued the journey.”

Recall that the first Islamic Bank in Nigeria, Jaiz was established during the reign of Chukwuma Soludo.

The now Governor of Anambra State served one tenure as the apex bank governor.

According to CBN, the country currently has four Islamic banks in the country. This is out of 43 Deposit Money Banks contained in the recently updated list of approved banks in Nigeria.

 

 

 

 

Follow us for more news on our WhatsApp News Channels @

https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VaC505jB4hdZ5Yx9g82U

 

 

 

By admin

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *