NIGERIA: U.S. TREASURY VISITOR DISCUSSES HOUSING AND

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 LAGOS 000290 SIPDIS STATE PASS USAID FOR NFREEMAN, GBERTOLIN DOC FOR 3317/ITA/OA/KBURRESS DOC FOR 3310/USFC/OIO/ANESA/DHARRIS DOC FOR USPTO-PAUL SALMON DOJ FOR MARIE-FLORE KOUAME TREASURY FOR RHALL, DPETERS STATE PASS EXIM FOR JRICHTER STATE PASS OPIC FOR ZHAN, MSTUCKART, JEDWARDS STATE PASS TDA FOR LFITTS, PMARIN E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EFIN ECON EINV ENRG NI SUBJECT: NIGERIA: U.S. TREASURY VISITOR DISCUSSES HOUSING AND MORTGAGES, AFC, STATE BOND ISSUANCE Ref: A) Septel Lagos 266 B) Abuja 1147 ¶1. (SBU) Summary: During June 19-20 meetings with Richard Hall, U.S. Department of Treasury, Nigerian bankers and financiers expressed concerns about the need for more coherence in Nigeria's financial regulatory environment. Housing and mortgages hold the most promise for investment and high returns. State governments are going to the debt market to finance infrastructure projects, but lack debt management capacity. End Summary. . What Roles, Responsibilities for Regulators? -------------- . ¶2. (U) In June 19-20 meetings with Richard Hall, International Economist of the U.S. Department of Treasury, stakeholders took a range of positions on what should be the appropriate level of regulation in the financial sector. Bismarck Rewane of Financial Derivatives lamented the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE)'s attempts to control stock prices. (Note: In response to the recent dips in stock prices, the Security Exchange Commission (SEC) has been making statements about the stock market growing stronger and listed companies delivering good returns. SEC's statements, instead of allaying investor fears, have only confirmed concerns about the stock market's performance.(Ref B) End Note) He alleged that high NSE transaction fees cost foreign investors about USD 4 million on every USD 100 million of investment. These costs also deter those investors who had exited the market from reinvesting. Malcolm Gilroy of United Bank for Africa (UBA) also believes immediate changes are needed to ensure that regulators are not also players in the stock market. He emphasized the need for fewer regulations, arguing that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)'s stringent oversight is not conducive to the emergence of a sophisticated market. The CBN should let the banks figure certain things out themselves rather than controlling them through mandates, he added. Taking the opposite view, Rewane argued the need to have one single regulator, possibly the CBN, for the financial sector in order to implement 
correct policies. He predicted that Nigeria would explore the option of a centralized regulatory framework to oversee the entire financial sector, including banking, insurance, and capital markets. ¶3. (U) Also under debate was the division of roles and responsibilities between the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN),Security and Exchange Commission (SEC),and Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). Professor Doyin Salami of the Lagos Business School said the CBN has not acknowledged the fragility and fundamental weaknesses in the financial system and has been behaving as if no problem exists. Instead of cooperating, the regulators jockey and compete for power. Whereas the SEC exists to regulate the NSE, in reality it has been the other way around, Salami contended. Richard Kramer of African Capital Alliance (ACA) also underscored the need for the CBN, SEC, and NSE to act in line with their regulatory purviews. . CBN Governor's Future in Doubt -------------- . ¶4. (SBU) Salami and Rewane also voiced concern about the rumored removal of CBN Governor Chukwuma Soludo and any future role for the current Minister of Finance Shamsuddeen Usman at the Central Bank. Neither expert thinks that Usman would be the best candidate to replace Soludo as Central Bank Governor should Soludo be removed. Gilroy agreed that Soludo's future in the job looks bleak, and expressed further reservations about President Yar'Adua's policy agenda and its implications for the macro-economy. Gilroy said former President Obasanjo had put the economy on an even keel during his administration; that economic stability may be shaken if President Yar'Adua cannot get beyond the demands of politicians, he contended. . How to Redirect Wealth to the North -------------- . ¶5. (SBU) Rewane opined that there are crosswinds blowing over Nigeria presently with economic power shifting southward and political power shifting northward. Political leaders in the north LAGOS 00000290 002 OF 003 want to redirect economic power from the south to the north, he alleged. This desire stemmed from the economic disparity between the north and south, where wealth is concentrated in the south. He noted that the per capita income of Port Harcourt in the south is seven times that of Maiduguri in the north; he also noted that only nine percent of bank shareholdings are in northern hands. Rewane believes the "northern conspiracy" to redistribute economic wealth has been partially responsible for the recent downward turn in bank stock prices on the NSE. . NESG Supports Establishment of Sovereign Wealth Fund -------------- . ¶6. (U) According to Mansur Ahmed, Executive Director of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG),the Federal Government had set up a subcommittee to explore the possibility of creating a sovereign wealth fund for Nigeria. He believes within six to nine months concrete plans to establish a fund will be in place, although he was uncertain about the potential size of the fund. He sees the fund as a conduit to better utilize foreign reserves through a more market driven strategy. (Comment: Ahmed's comment is not really clear given that a constitutional amendment would be required for Nigeria to have a sovereign wealth fund. End comment) . Housing Sector, Mortgage Present Big Opportunities -------------- . ¶7. (U) The mortgage market and housing sector hold the most promise in terms of investment and high returns, stakeholders posited. According to Gilroy, the staggering costs of housing and rent contribute to the increasing inflation rates in Nigeria's metropolitan areas. He said rental prices on Ikoyi and Victoria Islands, the upscale residential and commercial areas in Lagos State, easily double in a year without any value added to the property. The situation has worsened in recent years due to a confluence of factors, including an expanding middle class, a migration of people from Port Harcourt to Lagos, a return of successful Nigerians from the diaspora, and an influx of expatriates into the oil, banking, and telecommunication industries, Cecilia Ibru, Managing Director of Oceanic Bank, elaborated. . State Governments Head to Market to Raise Capital -------------- . ¶8. (U) Gilroy pointed out the recent spate of state governments going to the debt market to raise capital, but noted the states' lack of capacity for debt management. Lagos State Government (LASG),in particular, has been moving aggressively to the bond market to fund plans for massive infrastructure spending. (Note: For example, the Africa Finance Corporation is working with LASG to provide a long-term sustainable mortgage finance solution for housing construction. They plan to do so through a public bond issuance by LASG to be backed by credit guarantees from development financial institutions such as African Development Bank. End Note) On state governments raising capital from the debt market, Gilroy sees a need for cooperation between international financial institutions (IFIs),such as the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF),and the state governments. Whereas the magnitude of projects conceived by state governments far exceeds the human and technical capacity found at this level, IFIs can provide technical assistance and expertise, he recommended. . AFC to Address Gaps in Project-Financing for Africa -------------- . ¶9. (U) (Comment: AFC is currently under investigation by the Federal Government about the CBN's seed capital investment in the corporation. Interlocutors express reservations about the CBN's management structure. (Ref B) The information provided by AFC should be considered within this framework. End comment) Executive Vice President of Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) Asamoah said, while many countries have a reasonable development framework on the books, most governments lack the capacity at the lower echelon to LAGOS 00000290 003 OF 003 implement projects. The Nigerian private sector has been benefiting from the government's under-capacity by securing lucrative contracts, only to have them terminated upon a change in administration. Asamoah recognized the technical expertise and long-term financing capacity of the International Finance Corporation (IFC); however, he criticized the conditionality attached to IFC-funded projects and the slow pace at which they are executed. ¶10. (U) AFC's strategy is to fill gaps in the current system by providing missing links, which could be the creation, development, and in some cases implementation of projects, Asamoah argued. The AFC was set up to address two major stumbling blocks to project-financing in Africa: getting projects to a bankable stage and providing early risk capital. With respect to the first issue, AFC houses a project development arm that conducts feasibility studies and provides the engineering and technical skills needed to make projects bankable, in other words, to take projects to the stage where financiers can invest in them. Of equal importance is the AFC's role in providing risk capital, and even bridge financing, in the early stages of a project's inception and development, Asamoah maintained. AFC is poised to launch an infrastructure fund, a general equity fund, and, over the long term a mining fund for Africa, Tunde Omotoba, Head of AFC's Private Equity division, told Hall. ¶11. (U) With regard to the CBN's role in the creation of AFC, Asamoah considers the ongoing investigation ordered by President Yar'Adua a fall-out from the change in administrations. He contended that, with the CBN as a central shareholder, the AFC's management board can avoid overt political influence and send a positive signal to the private sector about the Government of Nigeria's (GON) commitment to development. Asamoah also said the decision to headquarter the AFC in Nigeria was for ease in raising funds; instead of going to all countries for seed capital, a process that could take more than five years, AFC circumvented this protracted process by raising capital in Nigeria where the money is. When prompted about the process of project selection, Omotoba said AFC has an internal committee set up to vet projects before they are turned over for selection to the general investment committee, which has a private sector majority. . AFC Illustrates Cozy Relationship Between Regulators, Banks -------------- . ¶12. (U) The ongoing investigation into the CBN's role in establishing the AFC highlights concerns over the cozy relationship between the banks and their regulators. Stakeholders pointed to membership of the regulator, CBN Governor Soludo, and the regulatees, banks' Managing Directors, on the Board of AFC as indicative that the various interests in the banking sector have to be sorted out. Kramer disagreed that this constitutes a problem, arguing that the banks are not as close to President Yar'Adua as they had been to former President Obasanjo. However, vested interests are still strong in resisting policy reforms, he quickly added. ¶13. (U) This cable has been cleared with Richard Hall and Embassy Abuja. BLAIR