Diamond Bank

See also Diamond Bank (Chicago), Diamond Trust Bank Group of East Africa and Antwerp Diamond Bank.

Diamond Bank Nigeria Plc.

Type	Public:NSE: DIAMONDBANK
Industry	Finance
Founded	December 20, 1990[1]
Headquarters	Adeola Hopewell Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, Nigeria[2]
Area served	Nigeria
Key people	HRM Igwe Nnaemeka A. Achebe Chairman Alex Otti Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer
Services	Banking, Financial Services
Revenue	:Pretax: ₦7 billion (US$45 million) (Q3:2010)[3]
Total assets	₦611.6 billion (US$3.93 billion) (September 2010)
Subsidiaries	see article
Website	Homepage

Diamond Bank Plc., whose complete name is Diamond Bank Nigeria Plc., but is commonly referred to as Diamond Bank, is a full-service International Bank based in Nigeria. It is one of the twenty-five (25) licensed commercial banks in the country.^[4]

Overview

The bank is a large financial services provider in West Africa. Headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria's commercial capital, the bank maintains a banking subsidiary in Benin, with a view of expanding into Senegal, Cote d'Ivoire and Togo.^[5] As of November 2010^[update], the bank's total assets were valued in excess of US$3.9 billion (NGN:612 billion)^[6], with shareholders' equity of approximately US$682 million (NGN:106.11 billion).^[7]

History

Diamond Bank was incorporated on December 20, 1990, and opened for business on March 21, 1991. In 2005, as part of the recapitalization directives issued to commercial banks by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the banking regulator in the country, Diamond Bank successfully merged with Lion Bank, a commercial bank, retaining the name Diamond Bank. In May that same year, the bank floated the shares of its stock in an IPO, on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). The shares trade under the symbol: DIAMONDBANK.^[8] In January 2010, Diamond Bank became a constituent part of the not-yet-officially-established NSE-30 stock index.^[9]

The bank was selected as "Nigerian Bank of the Year" for 2009 by ThisDay News,.^[10] In January 2008, Diamond Bank's global depository receipts (GDR) were listed on the Professional Securities Market of the London Stock Exchange, becoming the first bank in Africa to do so.^[11]

Subsidiaries

Diamond Bank operates several subsidiary companies, based in Lagos, Nigeria, except where indicated:^[12][13]

• Diamond Capital Limited
• Diamond Pension Funds Custodian Limited
• Diamond Mortgages Limited
• ADIC Insurance Limited
• Diamond Bank Benin - Based in Cotonou, Benin

Under the International banking license that Diamond Bank Plc. has applied for in Nigeria, the bank plans to divest from all non-bank subsidiaries and retain shareholding only in Diamond Bank Benin.^[14]

Branches

As of March 2011^[update], the bank operates over two-hundred (200) branches throughout the country.^[15]

External links

• Interview With Former Managing Director (2005-2011) Emeka Onwuka
• Website of Diamond Bank Nigeria Plc.
• Company Profile At Google Finance
• (French) Website of Diamond Bank Benin
• Website of the Central Bank of Nigeria

See also

• List of banks in Nigeria
• List of banks in Africa
• Central Bank of Nigeria
• Economy of Nigeria

References

1. ^ Diamond Bank - About Us - Company Profile
2. ^ Google Finance - Diamond Bank
3. ^ Q3:2010 Financial Report
4. ^ List of Licensed Commercial Banks In Nigeria
5. ^ Diamond Bank Has Expansion Plans Into Francophone West Africa
6. ^ 30 September 2010 Unaudited Financial Report
7. ^ November 2010 Net Asset Values of Publicly Traded Commercial Banks In Nigeria
8. ^ History of Diamond Bank Nigeria Plc.
9. ^ Tradingmarkets.com, 11 January 2010, 'NSE-30 Index - Oando, Diamond Bank, Others Make List', retrieved 17 June 2010
10. ^ AllAfrica, 'Diamond Bank is 'Nigeria's Bank of the Year', retrieved 17 June 2010
11. ^ Diamond Bank, Company Profile, Our History
12. ^ Diamond Bank - About Us - Affiliates
13. ^ Diamond Bank - Investor Relations - Key Milestones
14. ^ Diamond Bank Plc. Divesting From All Non-Core Businesses
15. ^ Diamond Bank, Our Branch Network