Summary of the Fall of Alpha Merchant Bank Alpha Merchant Bank, established in 1988, was one of the Nigerian banks that failed during the banking-sector crisis of the 1990s. Its collapse was driven primarily by weak corporate governance, insider abuse, poor risk management, excessive lending, inadequate internal controls, and financial irregularities. From its early years, the bank experienced serious disputes among its directors and shareholders. These governance problems were accompanied by questionable transactions, excessive exposure to related parties, inadequate security for loans, and practices that concealed the bank’s deteriorating financial position. As non-performing loans increased and provisions were understated, the bank’s reported financial strength did not reflect its true condition. By 1993, Alpha had become severely undercapitalised, insolvent and illiquid, with insufficient capacity to meet its obligations to depositors. Regulatory investigations by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) exposed the extent of the bank’s financial and governance problems. Attempts to recapitalise the institution were unsuccessful, leading to the revocation of its banking licence on 8 September 1994 and its subsequent liquidation. The NDIC was appointed liquidator and embarked on a long-term process of recovering the bank’s assets, settling eligible depositors and creditors, and eventually distributing liquidation dividends to shareholders. The liquidation process continued for decades, with further shareholder distributions announced as recoveries were made. The fall of Alpha Merchant Bank demonstrates how governance failures, insider-related risks, weak controls, poor credit management and inadequate risk oversight can interact to turn operational and governance weaknesses into a full-scale financial institution failure.