Lagos — West African business conglomerate, Stallion Group, owned by the Vaswani Brothers, has strongly denied recent reports in the media pointing to a N3 billion non-performing loan purportedlyowed by one of its subsidiaries, premium Seafoods Ltd, to Equatorial Trust Bank (ETB), Nigeria.

Sources from the company indicate that the group is one of the bank's prime customers enjoying a very active and mutually beneficial relationship that commenced with the opening of the bank.

The facilities have always been constantly serviced and maintained within approved limits of N 5 billion. Stallion sources confirm that the entire amount under the facility has been paid and Stallion's liability to ETB is now zero. Stallion is one of Nigeria 's oldest conglomerates that is into diversified industries, agriculture, commodities, automobiles, food, real estate and services.

The group which is known for its wide presence in the country and strong financial strength, has been working for decades with Nigeria 's prime banking institutions.

Stallion sources further stated that the group lauds and supports the current initiatives launched by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Economic and Financial Crime Commission (EFCC) in controlling non-performing bank debts and sanitising the banking system. At thesame time, Stallion has emphasised its inherent strength and abilityto meet all its obligations to banks in a timely manner.