Tag: UBA

United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc has launched a simplified instant account opening digital platform designed to make banking faster, more accessible, and truly borderless for customers across Africa and in the diaspora.

The new platform enables prospective customers to begin and complete their account opening journey fully online, eliminating the traditional barriers of paperwork and initial branch visits. With this innovation, UBA continues to strengthen its leadership in digital banking and financial inclusion across the continent.

Through the new platform, customers can start their onboarding journey via the web by simply selecting their preferred language and country. The process is accessible on computers, tablets, and smartphones, ensuring a consistent and user-friendly experience across devices.

The platform supports both Naira and Diaspora account openings, offering multi-language options that reflect UBA’s diverse customer base and pan-African footprint.

In line with UBA’s commitment to global best practices, the Instant Account Opening platform is fully aligned with applicable privacy and data protection regulations, including the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDPA) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This ensures strong data privacy, enhanced customer confidence, and a robust legal framework for international and diaspora customers.

Unlike traditional commercial bank onboarding processes, which often require physical branch visits, paper documentation, and in-person biometric capture, UBA’s new platform allows customers to initiate and complete onboarding digitally. Customers can upload required documents, complete digital KYC, and enroll in UBA’s digital channels immediately.

At the same time, the platform matches the speed and convenience customers have come to expect from fintechs, while retaining the strength, security, and regulatory depth of a leading African bank.

Opening an account on the platform is simple and intuitive, and requires a visit aop.ubagroup.com, clicking open a Savings Account and selecting Get Started and entering your BVN and complete facial verification among others.

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Group Head, Retail and Digital Banking, Shamsideen Fashola, noted  that with this launch, UBA reinforces its mission to leverage technology to democratize access to financial services, combining convenience, compliance, speed, and accessibility in one seamless platform.

 “At UBA, we are committed to redefining the customer experience through innovation and simplicity. Our new Instant Account Opening platform reflects this commitment by removing traditional barriers and making it easy for anyone — whether on the continent or in the diaspora — to open an account in minutes. This fully digital solution underscores our belief that banking should be accessible, secure, and truly borderless,” Shamsideen said

Alero Ladipo, Group Head, Brand, Marketing and Corporate Communication said: “We understand that today’s customers expect speed, convenience, and compliance without compromise. With this platform, we have blended industry-leading digital onboarding with robust privacy and regulatory standards, ensuring that our retail customers enjoy a seamless account opening experience that matches global best practices.”

The Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) has admitted an additional 3.16 billion ordinary shares of United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, to its daily official list.

The move signals major enhancement of the bank’s market capitalisation whilst also deepening liquidity on the capital market.

The NGX noted this in a confirmatory letter to the bank, dated January 12, 2026, and signed by Head, Issuer Regulation Department at NGX, Godstime Iwenkehai, who explained that the additional shares were listed following the successful conclusion of UBA’s recent rights issuance exercise.

“Following the submission of all post-approval documents, please be informed that United Bank for Africa Plc Rights Issue of 3,156,869,665 ordinary shares of 50 Kobo each at N50.00 per share on the basis of one new ordinary share for every 13 ordinary shares held were formally listed on the Daily Official List of Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) on, Monday, 12 January 2026,” Iwenkehai stated in the letter.

UBA’s Group Managing Director/CEO, Oliver Alawuba, who received the letter, commended the confirmation, as he noted that the move underscores robust investor confidence in the bank’s capitalisation strategy and future prospects.

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 “We welcome the formal confirmation from NGX on the listing of our rights issue shares. This successful transaction reflects strong investor confidence in UBA’s financial strength, governance, and growth strategy. Needless to say that the additional capital will further support our Pan-African and global expansion, and enhance our capacity to deliver sustainable value to all stakeholders,” Alawuba stated.

In November 2024, the bank had raised N239 billion, which elevated its capital base to N355 billion at that time, while the recently concluded rights issue has injected an additional N158 billion, bringing the bank’s total capital to N513 billion.

This latest influx means UBA’s qualifying capital base now surpasses the N500 billion requirement by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), thereby exceeding the recapitalisation minimum for banks with international authorisation.

The United Bank for Africa (UBA Plc) has surpassed the N500 billion capital requirement set by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for banks with international licences.

As at the 2025 half-year audited results, the UBA’s share capital and share premium stood at approximately N350 billion.

However, following the successful completion of the second tranche of its Rights Issue, for which the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved the allotment of N157 billion to shareholders, the bank’s total share capital now exceeds the N500 billion minimum capital requirement prescribed by the CBN.

This outcome affirms the bank’s strong balance sheet and demonstrates its full compliance with applicable regulatory capital requirements.

The CBN had, on March 28, 2024 announced a two-year bank recapitalisation exercise which commenced on April 1, 2024. The recapitalisation plan requires minimum capital of N500 billion, N200 billion and N50 billion for commercial banks with international, national and regional licences respectively. The 24-month timeline for compliance ends on March 31, 2026.

A joint report by Vetiva Advisory Limited, United Capital and CardinalStone, which handled the rights issue, said N157.84 billion was raised after the exercise was fully subscribed. The rights issue offered 3,156,869,665 ordinary shares at N50 per share.

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The shares were offered on the basis of one new share for every 13 existing shares held by shareholders on the register as of 16 July 2025.

“At the close of the acceptance list on Friday, 19 September 2025, a total of 6,404 acceptances for 4,134,747,690 ordinary shares valued at N206,737,384,500.00 were initially received in connection with the rights issue. However, the issue is now valued at N157,843,483,250.00 for 3,156,869,665 ordinary shares,” the report said..

Following scaling adjustments by shareholders, the final allotment amounted to 3.16bn shares worth N157.84 billion, representing 100 per cent subscription of the rights issue.

Analysis of the subscriptions shows that 6,404 valid applications were received for 3.57 billion shares valued at N178.3 billion, while 568.7m shares valued at N28.43 billion were deemed invalid.

Full acceptances accounted for 453.58 million shares, and partial acceptances totaled 135.27 million shares, resulting in 190.93 million shares partially renounced.

During the exercise, a total of 2,568,006,215 shares were renounced and reallocated. Applications for additional shares amounted to 2.98 billion shares valued at N148.86 billion, of which 2.57 billion shares valued at N128.4 billion were allotted, following a scale-down by one shareholder.

The Securities and Exchange Commission has cleared the basis of allotment. The PAC Registrars and Investor Services Limited will credit the CSCS accounts of allottees by Friday, 16 January 2026, while surplus subscription monies will be returned by Tuesday, 13 January 2026. Shareholders without CSCS accounts will have shares credited using a Registrar Identification Number in line with SEC directives on dematerialisation of share certificates.

The successful rights issue highlights strong investor confidence in UBA and provides additional capital to support the bank’s operations and expansion initiatives across Africa.

United Bank for Africa (UBA), has announced a strategic partnership with the Lions Group, a leading entertainment and lifestyle company, targeted at delivering exclusive benefits to customers and Nigerians as part of the highly anticipated ‘Welcome to the Detty Side’ festive campaign.

This collaboration which will offer premium entertainment experiences throughout the festive season, is designed to provide unrivalled value to customers and visitors coming in from overseas.

Both UBA customers and intending clients can seamlessly access all offers by simply obtaining the UBA Red Pass, which serves as the official access card for the entire Detty Side campaign.

Speaking during the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), Group Head, Marketing & Corporate Communications, Alero Ladipo, emphasised the bank’s commitment towards rewarding its customers with unique and memorable experiences, noting that UBA is always seeking innovative ways to add unequalled value to our customers at all times, especially during key moments of celebration like the festive season.

She continued: “Our partnership with the prestigious Lions Group allows us give them premium value at a time most needed, by granting our customers, and would-be customers exclusive access to some of the most sought-after beach destinations and concerts in Lagos. The UBA Red Pass is your key to unlocking a truly memorable ‘Detty December for all’, and we are excited to offer these fantastic discounts plus cashback rewards.”

Vice President, Strategy and Growth, Lions Group Africa, Adebayo Abe,  said: “At Lions Group, we are relentlessly committed to deepening value for our customers, through innovative and secure digital payment solutions that guarantee unmatched satisfaction for Nigerians particularly during this yuletide when Nigerians in diaspora are looking to have an unforgettable Detty December experience when they return. With UBA, we did not need to look far as we found in them the best suited partner to achieve our goals, especially with the Red Pass.

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Continuing, Abe said: “UBA Red Pass is a sure win for us, imbued with  endless possibilities that will help connect all seamlessly, by granting our customers, exclusive access to some of the best destinations and concerts in Lagos. we are excited to offer these fantastic discounts plus cashback rewards.”

The partnership with Lions Group and Wakanow offers major benefits for UBA Red Pass holders that include, a 25% discount on access fees to Lions Group’s premium beach destinations, including Wave Beach, Kyma Beach, and Athena Beach plus 5% cashback on purchases of concert tickets for major December shows such as Kizz Daniel Live, Fireboy Live, Dance With Poco Lee, and other Lions Group events, when tickets are bought via the Detty Side website.

Also speaking, Vice President, Wakanow, Gbolahan Salami, added that the partnership with a dependable bank like UBA is one that we are excited about as it will create an effective medium where we are able to reach a greater number of people and serve them seamlessly. “Our commitment without a doubt is to reward and pamper customers as well as ensure that they are treated to an invaluable experience inclusive of great deals during this period.

This initiative reinforces UBA’s dedication to deepening customer engagement and leading the market in providing innovative, lifestyle-enhancing solutions.

By Bamidele Johnson

When history looks back at Africa‘s economic awakening, November 10, 2025, may stand out as one of those quietly decisive days when ambition met architecture and rhetoric gave way to resolve.

In Abu Dhabi at the UAE–Chad Trade and Investment Forum, Oliver Alawuba, Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, delivered a keynote address that sounded like a rallying cry.

Under the theme “Financing African Competitiveness: Building Bridges, Powering Progress,” Alawuba outlined a compelling blueprint for how Africa can finance not just its dreams but its destiny.

“The era of potential is over. We are now in the era of execution,” he declared. The line drew a sharp boundary between the past and the future. It came across not as optimism but as intent from a banker who has spent decades proving that African capital can and should power African transformation.

At the centre of his message was Tchad Connexion 2030, Chad’s 30-billion-dollar development plan covering 268 projects across energy, water, infrastructure and human development. Alawuba praised it not merely as an economic plan but as a declaration of confidence and a move from the margins of global economics to its mainstream.

What elevated his address was the argument for a new financial architecture for Africa, one that mobilises local capital, leverages regional expertise and attracts global investment through credible structures. He proposed a three-part model built on international capital, African institutional banking and Development Finance Institutions, a framework that makes partnership both practical and profitable.

In Alawuba’s framing, African banks like UBA are no longer middlemen but “architects of finance.” He backed this up with examples. From the $400 million Julius Nyerere Hydropower Project in Tanzania to UBA’s $700 million investments in Nigeria’s power sector and $315 million in Ghana’s road infrastructure, he demonstrated that African banks are already financing transformation at scale.

In Chad, that commitment is personal and tangible. UBA has invested over $102 million in the nation’s securities, funded a $49 million domestic gas project, a $6.7 million wind farm in Amdjarass and key infrastructure in energy and telecoms. “We are here to be the bridge between vision and reality,” Alawuba said.

Beyond large projects, his emphasis on inclusion struck a chord. He reminded his audience that competitiveness is hollow without inclusion and that the road to Africa’s renaissance must pass through Beira, Nzerekore and Gulu, not only Lagos and Nairobi. By extending banking to the remotest corners, UBA ensures that the smallholder farmer and the local entrepreneur are as much a part of Africa’s competitiveness as the corporate boardroom.

Perhaps the most striking part of the address was Alawuba’s dismantling of the old myth that Africa lacks capital.

Citing data from the Africa Finance Corporation, he revealed that Africa holds about four trillion dollars in domestic financial assets, of which less than 15 percent is channeled into productive infrastructure.

“The challenge has never been a lack of capital but a lack of bankable structures and credible partnerships,” he said.

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In that moment, the narrative shifted. Africa was no longer a continent waiting to be rescued; it was a market ready to be financed.

Alawuba also invoked a spirit of partnership rooted in history, quoting Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, the UAE’s founding father: “Our forefathers lived and survived in a difficult environment because they recognised the need to work together.” The echo was a deliberate call for Africans and their international partners to unite resources and resilience to build something lasting.

The UAE–Chad partnership, seen in this light, becomes a symbol of a new kind of cooperation, South–South, investment-driven and anchored in shared prosperity. For Chad, it is a leap toward transformation. For Africa, it is a glimpse of what is possible when vision meets viable financing.

Alawuba’s address was a manifesto for a new African confidence, one grounded in competence, collaboration and capital. It was a reminder that Africa’s growth story will not be written in aid memos but in balance sheets and infrastructure blueprints.

If Tchad Connexion 2030 is the blueprint and if leaders like Alawuba are the bridge, it is safe to say that Africa’s future is already under construction.

Group Managing Director, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, Oliver Alawuba has explained the potential and gains of the $30 billion Chad Connection 2030 plan to the continent and global economies.

In his keynote speech delivered at the UAE-Chad Trade & Investment Forum in Abu Dhabi, UAE, Alawuba said that Africa has grown from the point of merely having potential to executing such great ideas.

Speaking on the theme: “Financing African Competitiveness – Building Bridges, Powering Progress”, he said: “For too long, the narrative around Africa has been one of potential. But I stand before you today to declare that the era of potential is over. We are now in the era of execution. And what we are witnessing in Chad is a masterclass in how to make that shift.”

Alawuba said the $30 billion Chad Connection 2030 plan is not just a document, but a declaration of intent.

He said: “It is a detailed roadmap to move a nation from the periphery to the very heart of global economic competitiveness. With its 268 projects targeting infrastructure, industrialization, and human development, it understands a fundamental truth: competitiveness is not born in boardrooms; it is built on the ground.”

This brings me to the core of my message today. A plan of this magnitude poses one critical question:

Speaking further on financing the future, he said: “It means understanding that a reliable power grid is the foundation of industrial growth. Chad’s target of 60 per cent electrification by 2030 will enable factories to operate, cold chains for agriculture to function, and the digital economy to flourish”.

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“It means recognizing that water access for 11 million additional people drives economic transformation. Safe water reduces healthcare burdens, enables food processing industries, and unlocks agricultural productivity across the value chain,” he added.

 “It means seeing the strategic value in infrastructure. When we finance a road, we finance market access. When we structure a PPP for renewable energy, we finance both climate resilience and energy independence. When we support digital payment systems, we create the foundation for inclusive economic growth. And it is built with governance that assures an investor that their capital is safe, and their project will be seen through,” he stated.

Alawuba said the bank believes that the capital to transform Africa exists, both within and outside our continent.

“The challenge has never been a lack of capital, but a lack of bankable structures and credible partnerships, including huge domestic capital misalignment.  According to the Africa Finance Corporation (AFC), Africa’s domestic financial assets are estimated to total approximately $4 trillion ($2.5 trillion in Commercial Bank Assets, $725 billion in Foreign Reserves and others, $455 billion in Pension Assets and $320 billion in Insurance Assets), but less than 15 per cent of these assets are currently channeled into productive infrastructure essential for growth. This is the gap we bridge,” he said.

“At UBA, our commitment is two-fold: we are both architects of national infrastructure and champions of grassroots financial inclusion. Here in Chad, this is not a promise; it is a proven track record. We have already committed over $102 million in direct investments in the State of Chad’s securities and have been the lead financier on critical national projects – from a $49 million domestic gas project to bring clean energy to households, to a $6.7 million wind farm in Amdjarass and essential funding for road maintenance and telecom modernization. This demonstrates a deep, vested partnership with Chad’s development agenda,” he added.