Months after Prince George’s County Executive Jack Johnson‘s trade mission to Nigeria, the much-anticipated first project to come out of the trip is still on hold.
In October, Johnson journeyed to the African nation with seven area businessmen of Nigerian descent, who also funded the trip, to talk to Nigerian businesses that he wanted to locate in the county.
On his return, Johnson announced a 10-point agreement with First City Monument Bank of Lagos, Nigeria. Johnson and bank directors agreed that the fast-growing $3 billion bank would open either a subsidiary or affiliate in the county to encourage trade between the county and Nigeria.
Before the bank can set up shop stateside, however, it must first get federal and state clearance, and as of Friday, it hadn’t applied for either, according to officials with the Federal Reserve and Maryland‘s banking oversight agency.
The first point of the agreement says the bank and county “will work with appropriate government entities necessary for the creation of a U.S. subsidiary or affiliate of FCMB in Prince George’s County.”
Johnson spokeswoman Denise Roberts said at this point, the details of the Nigerian bank’s arrival are being hammered out between the bank and members of the county’s business community.
“We expect an announcement about a final deal within the next several weeks, but at this point, the county is not involved with the process,” Roberts said.
Bank officials could not be reached, but CEO Ladi Balogun visited the county in early December to help develop local connections, said Johnson spokesman Jim Keary.
When the agreement wassigned, Balogun pledged to work aggressively to open an office in Prince George’s County.
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