UPDATE 2-Nigerian Skye Bank posts loss after provisions

* Plans to raise 100 bln naira over next two years

* Non-performing loans drive bank to $85 mln loss

* Cost cutting to help return to profitability

(Adds comment from CFO)

By Chijioke Ohuocha

LAGOS, Oct 29 (Reuters) - Nigeria's Skye Bank (SKYE.LG) said on Thursday it planned a 50 billion naira ($330 million) capital raising early next year and pledged to return to profitability by cutting costs and recovering non-performing loans.

The bank, one of Nigeria's five largest by book value, said it had swung to a 12.63 billion naira ($85 million) pretax loss in the 12 months to Sept. 30, compared with a pretax profit of 20.42 billion naira in the same period last year.

Chief Financial Officer Kunle Adedigba said the bank had made provisions for loan losses of 32 billion naira, including additional provisions required by the central bank, but would return to profit if it recovered 11 billion of that amount.

"Sometime next year we expect to have recovered 70 percent of our loans," he told a conference call.

Adedigba said the bank planned a 50 billion naira capital raising in the first three months of next year and that it aimed to raise a further 50 billion naira within the next two years.

"We would be coming to the market to raise capital by equity and debt to lengthen the maturity profile of our liabilities," he said.

Adedigba said Skye Bank would seek regulatory approval to shut between 10 and 15 branches this year and reduce staff as it seeks to cut costs.

Gross earnings in the year to September rose 36 percent to 101.44 billion naira from 74.61 billion naira a year earlier, it said in a filing to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

The bank was one of 14 lenders given the all clear during an audit of the financial sector by the central bank.

The regulator injected 400 billion naira into five banks on Aug. 14 and sacked their senior management after the first round of the special audit found lax governance had left them so weakly capitalised they posed a systemic risk.

Two months later it provided a further 200 billion naira to four more banks also judged to be facing a liquidity crisis.