Fidelity Bank In Fresh Monumental Fraud Scandal …Manager, Staff Arrested By EFCC

It is a glaring fact that we are indeed in a changing world; that is why most people do wrong things and still feel right about it. Or how else can one describe the unfaithfulness of Fidelity Bank Plc that prides itself as keeping people’s fidelity as it concerns their finances, yet engage in fraudulent ways of making the money kept with them grow wings or develop legs within their safe.

Although, a lot has come into the open about the incessant fraud cases involving the bank and its staff, this has in no way deterred the bank from getting into another scandal involving the disappearance of depositors’ funds. And whenever these frauds are committed, the bank still boasts that it’s the best when it comes to keeping fidelity with customers’ funds.

The latest from the filth emanating from the Nnamdi Okonkwo led bank is the arrest of  one of the bank’s branch managers at the Gwagwadala area of Abuja by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over the performing magic with depositor’s N25,000,000 (Twenty Five Million Naira) .

The branch manager, Augustine Odinawo was said to have diverted the said money with the aid of some other unscrupulous bankers into private account. The bank who has been perpetrating such act we heard was given a draft of the said amount by one Mrs. Juliet Uzor to pay into the account ofAbuja Geographic Information System (AGIS), but the self acclaimed smart banker, with the connivance of other suspects opened a fake ABIS account and paid the money into it. After the money cleared from the clearing house, the Fidelity Bank manager transferred his loot electronically to two company accounts from which he and his accomplice shared the money.

Now, EFCC is bent on making sure that justice is done in this case hence the anti-graft body has charged Fidelity Bank and its manager to court to answer the three charges of fraud and conspiracy to do fraud, forgery of public sector account and obtaining by false pretence.   

Meanwhile, another three staff of the bank have been apprehended in Lagos over the issue of fraud. The three staff are now tenants of the Special Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Panti Yaba.

According to what we gathered, the three bankers helped themselves with part of depositor’s money when they were given cash deposit to keep with the bank.

For the moment, many are still wondering why is it that Fidelity Bank is getting involved in fraud cases almost on a daily basis which could make many customers port to another bank or can discourage potential customers to run away from their services for the fear of experiencing the magical wand that is always taking their deposits away from them.

The bank changed the leadership baton between the former Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Reginald Ihejiahi, and Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo, who was announced CEO-designate in October last year. He assumed duties as the substantive Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the bank effective January 1, 2014. 
With this successful transition, Mr. Okonkwo has become the third CEO of Fidelity Bank, which for a quarter of a century had only two CEOs, becoming one of the banks with the most stable management in the industry.
Until his appointment, Okonkwo was the Executive Director in charge of the South Directorate of the bank.
The new MD holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Economics from University of Benin and MBA in Banking & Finance from Enugu State University.  He is also a graduate of the Advanced Management Programme of INSEAD Business School, Fontainebleau, France, as well as an alumnus of Harvard Business School and Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania. In addition, he has attended various other business and management training programmes locally and overseas.