Auwal Lawan, businessman who bought Polaris Bank for N1.35trn

Auwal Lawan Abdullahi is the investor behind Strategic Capital Investment Limited (SCIL), the firm which acquired Polaris Bank from the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON).

Daily Trust had reported that Strategic Capital Investment Limited acquired the commercial bank for N1.35 trillion with N50bn as an upfront payment.

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The acquisition of Polaris Bank was announced last week by AMCON and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

Owners of Strategic Capital Investment Limited

While Strategic Capital Investment Limited was only registered in April 2022, just six months ago, the business tycoon is known to have two other companies, Ponglomerape Limited and Nice Corporate Services Limited.

Previous reports on the acquisition of Polaris Bank had been linked to Auwal Lawan  Abdullahi, and following the sale announcement on Thursday, it was gathered that Auwal Lawan is one of the top directors at Strategic Capital Investment Limited.

The firm is owned by Ponglomerape Limited, which has on its board Lawan Auwal, Lawan Abdullahi, Lawan Shaibu, and Lawan Jamilu.

Who is Lawan Auwal, new owner of Polaris Bank?

Lawan Auwal is a businessman, who has been publicised to be a commercial farmer with investments in various sectors of Nigeria’s economy, including real estate,  trade, as well as oil and gas.

While his portfolio in Ponglomerape Limited shows he leads a board of four directors, he serves as managing director at Nice Corporate Services Limited.

Ponglomerape Limited was registered with the CAC on September 5, 2002, while Nice Corporate Services Limited was registered on May 13, 2004.

Although Gombe-born Lawan has been in business for over two decades, he came into the spotlight during his wedding to Halima Babangida, the second daughter and last child of former military dictator, General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (IBB) (rtd), in May 2017.

The wedding grabbed media headlines due to the number of private jets used by businessmen and guests who attended the wedding. It was gathered that about 30 private jets landed at Minna Airport, Niger State for the wedding.