The Managing Director of the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria, Ahmed Kuru, says the agency has recovered over N1tn from bank debtors and restored over 4,000 business relationships since its inception in July 2010.

Kuru, who spoke to journalists shortly after a courtesy visit by executives of the Business Recovery and Insolvency Practitioners Association of Nigeria, also said the agency was ready to partner with necessary stakeholders to ensure that all debt owed to the corporation, is recovered.

It was learnt that the visit by BRIPAN was to seek areas of collaboration between the two agencies.

Speaking to journalist during the event, the President of BRIPAN said, “We are here today to meet with the chief executive officer and the executive team of AMCON to see areas that BRIPAN can collaborate and partner with AMCON to develop the insolvency practice and business rescue mechanisms available in Nigeria and to improve training of insolvency practitioners, because AMCON’s main job is to solve insolvency issues relating to several debts.

“The debt recovery in Nigeria is still a work in progress such that law reform, training and necessary support to ensure that the recovery of debt, sale of assets is easily achievable.

On his part, Kuru said the corporation welcomes a partnership with BRIPAN as it would enable it to efficiently tackle the legal hurdles involved in debt recovery.

“Well, in business recovery there are quite a lot of legal hurdles to go through. The business process is difficult because you are dealing with third parties, businesses that have failed and issues that relate to the law, so working with people that understand the legal side of it is also very important.

“I am sure that by working together with BRIPAN, we can fill gaps in the legal area of debt recovery.”

On the corporation’s major achievements, the MD said, “AMCON basically was created to recover, restructure and close. So far we have recovered in excess of N1tn we have helped quite a lot of businesses that are currently running, we have also restored more that 4000-5000 business relationships.

He clarified that AMCON doesn’t take up new cases of emerging non-performing loans in banks, but is focused on recovering debts owed during the financial crisis of 2008.