GTBank denies giving N500 million to Tinubu

By Katola Olayemi

The Guaranty Trust Bank has denied giving the President-elect, Bola Tinubu new notes worth N500 million.

The bank reacted to a Twitter user, @ifygold21, who claimed that the bank gave the new notes to Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress on Friday.

The user quoted Segun Agbaje, the CEO of the bank, as saying the cash was released on President Muhammadu Buhari’s order.

In a statement by GTBank described the claim as “completely false”, adding that the allegation was aimed at tarnishing the image of the bank and its officers.

‘‘The attention of Guaranty Trust Bank Ltd (the “Bank”) has been drawn to a spurious post on Twitter by @ifygold21 alleging that the bank gave the new naira notes in the total sum of ₦500 million to one of the leading presidential candidates in the ongoing general elections on the eve of the elections and at the order of a high-ranking government official.

“The fact that the post refers to Segun Agbaje as managing director of the bank further exposes the sponsors of the content as uninformed and malicious. Accordingly, we would like to clarify that Miriam Olusanya is the managing director of the bank and has been at the helm of affairs of the bank in that capacity since her appointment in August 2021.

The bank also noted that its preliminary findings show that the post was made using a faceless bot account “evidently operated by unscrupulous person intent on propagating falsehood and inciting well-meaning Nigerians to their malicious ends.

“This is unwarranted and poses a serious threat to our continuing operations, with incalculable risks to lives and property,” it said.

The bank said that the post has been brought to the attention of all concerned parties including Twitter, for the identification of the owner of the fake account and consequent legal action.

It urged its customers to disregard the unsubstantiated claim in its entirety.

“Guaranty Trust Bank hereby restates its commitment to being a responsible, non-partisan corporate citizen with strict adherence to the highest standards of global best practice as well as sound corporate governance in all aspects of our business operations,” the bank said.