UPDATE 1-Nigeria points to cautious relaunch of Equitorial

* Shareholders pledge to recapitalise rescued bank

* Public offering, core investor or merger within a year

* Board to be reconstituted

(Adds details, quote, background)

By Oludare Mayowa

LAGOS, Nov 5 (Reuters) - Nigeria's central bank said on Thursday it would allow shareholders in Equitorial Trust Bank, rescued last month as part of a $4 billion banking sector bailout, to recapitalise the bank by the end of June 2010.

The regulator said it had granted a request from privately-held bank's shareholders to rectify the capital inadequacies and corporate governance issues which led to its rescue.

It said Equitorial Trust Bank (ETB) shareholders had pledged to diversify the capital base of the bank either through a public offering of shares, securing a core investor or merging with a local bank within a year.

The bank's board of directors, several members of which were removed during the bailout, would also be reconstituted.

"In granting these requests, the central bank noted that (its) special examination had not raised issues of serious supervisory concern or criminal activity by any member of the board of ETB," the central bank said in a statement.

Nigeria's banking sector was rocked in August when the central bank initially injected 400 billion naira to bail out five banks considered a risk to the banking system in sub-Saharan Africa's second biggest economy.

It injected the money into Afribank (AFRB.LG), Finbank (FIBP.LG), Intercontinental Bank (INBK.LG), Oceanic Bank (OCBK.LG) and Union Bank (UBNP.LG) and sacked senior executives after a special audit found lax governance had left them so weakly capitalised they posed a systemic risk.

The central bank then said on Oct. 2 that it was providing 200 billion naira to four more banks -- Bank PHB (BPHB.LG), Equitorial Trust Bank, Spring Bank (SPRN.LG) and Wema Bank (WEMA.LG) -- also judged to be facing a grave liquidity risk.

The central bank has said the rescued banks will be run as going concerns until new investors can be found to recapitalise them. Central Bank Governor Lamido Sanusi said in August his preferred option would be for them to be bought by other financial institutions. (For more Reuters Africa coverage and to have your say on the top issues, visit: af.reuters.com/ ) (Writing by Nick Tattersall; editing by Patrick Graham)