The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Union Bank

  • Union Bank: we are on course

    Union Bank: we are on course

    •New directors bring dynamism

    Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc at the weekend reiterated that it remains on course in achieving its growth targets as the commercial bank announced changes on its board of directors.

    In a regulatory filing at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the board of Union Bank stated that with the completion of its recent N50 billion equity raising from shareholders, the bank remains on course to deliver on its key objectives in 2017.

    According to the bank, the capital increase supports the bank’s short to medium term growth objectives as it looks to re-establish itself as one of Nigeria’s leading commercial banks.

    Union Bank also announced changes to the membership of its board of directors with the retirement of an executive director, Mr. Ibrahim Kwargana and the resignation of three non-executive directors, Engr. Mansur Ahmed, Chief Onikepo Akande and Mrs. Arina McDonald  last October.

    Kwargana’s retirement comes after 33 years in the sector. He was appointed as an executive director in 2009 by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), and until his retirement, was responsible for the Union Bank’s public sector business as well as commercial business development for the northern region.

    Ahmed, Akande and McDonald resigned following the successful completion of their tenures on the board.

    The bank has appointed three new non-executive directors, including Mr. Taimoor Labib, as non-executive director and Mrs. Obafunke Alade-Adeyefa and Mrs. Furera Isma Jumare as independent non-executive directors. All the appointments have been approved by the CBN.

    UBN Chairman, Mr. Cyril Odu, commended the contributions of the former directors to the transformation of the bank adding that the new directors bring dynamic experience that will be invaluable to the bank as it continues to move forward.

    UBN Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Emeka Emuwa also commended the contributions of the outgoing directors to the bank.

    “As we embark on a new phase of growth, we welcome our new directors who will bring fresh perspectives to our board deliberations,” Emuwa said.

  • Union Bank sells N291m shares to employees

    Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc has listed 51.299 million ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), pushing its total issued shares from 16.936 billion ordinary shares to 16.987 billion ordinary shares.

    The supplementary shares arose from the bank’s Long Term Transformation Incentive Plan (LTTIP). Union Bank had secured regulatory approval to sell the new shares worth N291 million to employees under its employee share scheme. The first generation bank sold about 51.3 million ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N5.67 under the LTTIP.

    Union Bank had on Monday October 30, 2017 closed application list for its N50 billion rights issue.  Application list for the rights issue had opened on September 20, 2017.

    Union Bank sought to raise N49.745 billion from existing shareholders through the rights issue of 12.133 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N4.10 per share. The rights issue was pre-allotted on the basis of five new ordinary shares of 50 kobo each for every seven ordinary shares held as at the close of business on Monday August 21, 2017.

    The net proceeds of the rights issue would be used to enhance the bank’s regulatory capital requirement, increase working capital and grow in strategic areas that correspond to emerging opportunities in Nigeria, enhance technological platforms through strategic investments in technology and digitalisation and optimise    customer experience with investments in customer touch points.

  • Bank claims ownership of Ikoyi flat where N13bn was discovered

    Bank claims ownership of Ikoyi flat where N13bn was discovered

    Union Bank of Nigeria Plc has claimed ownership of Flat 7B in Osborne Towers, Ikoyi, where huge cash was found earlier this year.

    The money which has been forfeited to the Federal Government on June 6, included 43,449,947 (about N13 billion), N23, 218,000 and £27,800 (about N10.6 million).

    In its pending application, the bank is praying the Federal High Court in Lagos to vacate an interim order forfeiting the flat to the federal government.

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had accused a former Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), Ayodele Oke, of fraudulently converting the agency’s funds.

    It alleged that Oke’s wife, Folasade, used part of the funds to buy the flat.

    The court, on November 9, ordered the flat’s temporary forfeiture to the federal government.

    Justice Saliu Saidu ruled that it would bepermanently forfeited if no one turned up to justify ownership within 14 days.

    Union Bank’s lawyer, Chief Ajibola Aribisala (SAN), said on Thursday he filed an application seeking to vacate the interim forfeiture order.

    In a supporting affidavit, the bank said the flat was part of 16, Osborne Road, Ikoyi, belonging to the former National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Adamu Mu’azu.

    It said the property was covered by a Certificate of Occupancy dated September 27, 2009 and registered as 97/97/2009 in the Lands Registry Office, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.

    According to the bank, Alhaji Mu’azu mortgaged the property to it by virtue of Tripartite Deed of Legal Mortgage dated November 1, 2011.

    Union Bank said the property was a security for a loan granted to Tripple A Properties & Investment Limited.

    The bank further claimed that the property’s original titled deed had been vested in it (the bank).

    Besides, it said the loan was yet to be liquidated despite its tenor expiring.

    The bank claimed it sold the property to Chobe Ventures Limited to liquidate the loan.

    EFCC, in its counter affidavit, argued that the bank lacks the locus standi to challenge the forfeiture.

  • ‘Kwara cassava farmers yet to benefit from N1bn agric loan’

    ‘Kwara cassava farmers yet to benefit from N1bn agric loan’

    The Kwara Chapter of Cassava Growers Association of Nigeria on Friday said its members had not benefitted from the N1 billion Federal Government Agriculture Loan Scheme in the state.

    Mr Sunday Moses, the Secretary of the association, disclosed this while speaking in llorin.

    He said his members had acquired lands to cultivate cassava in large quantities and opened bank accounts in response to the request from the state government.

    According to Moses, the state government has disbursed N1 billion to 500 others small scale farmers and 40 commercial farmers in the state.

    The Secretary alleged that the agriculture loan was received by the state government from the Federal Government on behalf of 2000 farmers which included 500 cassava growers.

    He expressed regret that none of his members benefited from the loan scheme.

    Moses said that about 500 members of the association had opened accounts with the Union Bank in line with the state government’s directive.

    He said that his members had been in the process of securing the loan for about one and half years now, but nothing had been forthcoming.

    “Five hundred members of our association have done the necessary things and submitted necessary documents, but it is surprising when the commissioner for agriculture said there was no provision for them,” he said.

    Moses appealed to the state government to consider the interest of his members of as they were part of the 2000 farmers that the loan scheme was meant for.

    In his reaction, Mr Anu Ibiwoye, the Special Adviser to Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed on Agriculture, said the state was yet to receive the N1 billion loan meant for cassava farmers in the state.

    He said the opening of account with with the Union Bank was just one of the conditions of taking the loan, adding that the cassava growers in the state were yet to meet other conditions to access the loan.

    Ibiwoye gave an assurance that the state government would release the fund as soon as the Central Bank of Nigeria CBN disbursed it to the state.

    NAN

  • Union Bank closes application for N50b rights issue

    Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc has closed the application list for its N50 billion rights issue. The application list for the rights issue opened on September 20, 2017 and closed on Monday October 30, 2017.

    Union Bank planned to raise N49.745 billion from existing shareholders through a rights issue of 12.133 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N4.10 per share. The rights issue had been pre-allotted on the basis of five new ordinary shares of 50 kobo each for every seven ordinary shares held as at the close of business on Monday August 21, 2017.

    The net proceeds of the rights issue will be used to enhance the bank’s regulatory capital requirement, increase working capital and grow in strategic areas that correspond to emerging opportunities in Nigeria, enhance technological platforms through strategic investments in technology and digitalisation and optimise customer experience with investments in customer touch points.

    Chief Executive Officer, Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc, Mr. Emeka Emuwa, has said the new capital raising is critical to the bank’s short to medium term business objectives as the new equity funds will support the bank’s strategy to accelerate business growth and position it as a leading commercial bank in Nigeria.

    “With the commencement of the rights issue subscription, we have now officially entered a new phase of our transformation where we will be focused on accelerating business growth to deliver on our objective of becoming one of Nigeria’s leading financial institutions,” Emuwa said.

  • Union Bank closes application for N50b rights issue

    Union Bank closes application for N50b rights issue

    Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc will today close application for its N50 billion rights issue.  Application list for the rights issue opened on September 20, 2017 and will close today,  Monday October 30.

    Union Bank is raising N49.745 billion from existing shareholders through a rights issue of 12.133 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N4.10 per share. The rights issue has been pre-allotted on the basis of five new ordinary shares of 50 kobo each for every seven ordinary shares held as at the close of business on Monday August 21, 2017.

    The rights are also tradeable on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) during the offer period, giving shareholders that fully or partly renounced their rights opportunity to trade those shares at profit. Union Bank’s share price opens today at the NSE at N5.72 per share.

    The net proceeds of the rights issue will be used to enhance the bank’s regulatory capital requirement, increase working capital and grow in strategic areas that correspond to emerging opportunities in Nigeria, enhance technological platforms through strategic investments in technology and digitalisation and optimise customer experience with investments in customer touch points.

    Chief Executive Officer, Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc, Mr. Emeka Emuwa, said the new capital raising was critical to the bank’s short to medium term business objectives as the new equity funds will support the bank’s strategy to accelerate business growth and position it as a leading commercial bank in Nigeria.

    “With the commencement of the rights issue subscription, we have now officially entered a new phase of our transformation where we will be focused on accelerating business growth to deliver on our objective of becoming one of Nigeria’s leading financial institutions,” Emuwa said.

    The bank has kicked off a roadshow to sensitise shareholders with an event in Enugu last week. Shareholders’ fora will also be held in Lagos, Port-Harcourt and Abuja later this month.

    Chapel Hill Advisory Partners Limited is Lead Issuing House to the offer while FSDH Merchant Bank Limited and Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited are Joint Issuing Houses.

  • Union Bank, AG Leventis seek extension of deadline to restructure shares

    Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc and AG Leventis (Nigeria) Plc have applied to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) to grant them waiver and extend the deadlines for the restructuring of their share capital.

    The NSE had given Union Bank and AG Leventis Friday, June 30, and July 31, 2017 respectively as deadlines to restructure their issued share capital to dilute the existing concentrated shareholdings of the core investors and allow more investments from the general investing public.

    The latest report by the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on companies in violation of post-listing rules indicated that Union Bank and AG Leventis are still in violation of the listing requirement on free float, which mandates companies on the Exchange to have a certain minimum percentage of their shares in the hand of investing public.

    A regulatory report at the Exchange indicated that Union Bank and AG Leventis have sought for extension of the deadlines.

    Free float, otherwise known as public float, refers to the number of shares of a quoted company held by ordinary shareholders other than those directly or indirectly held by its parent, subsidiary or associate companies or any subsidiaries or associates of its parent company; its directors who are holding office as directors of the entity and their close family members and any single individual or institutional shareholder holding a statutorily significant stake, which is 5.0 per cent and above in Nigeria.

    Thus, free float’s shares do not include shares held directly or indirectly by any officer, director, controlling shareholder or other concentrated, affiliated or family holdings.

    Companies listed on the Exchange are required to maintain a minimum free float for the set standards under which they are listed in order to ensure that there is an orderly and liquid market in their securities. The free float requirement for companies on the premium and main boards is 20 per cent while companies on the third tier board, otherwise known as Alternative Securities Market (ASEM) are required to have 15 per cent free float.

    According to the report, Union Bank has a free float of 14.94 per cent; 5.06 per cent below the required 20 per cent for the bank’s listing status on the main board of the Exchange. AG Leventis has free float of 11.64 per cent, 8.36 per cent below the 20 per cent free float for companies listed on the main board.

    The report indicated that other companies, which have free float deficiencies have either started arrangements to resolve the deficiency or still have longer period to comply. For instance, Champion Breweries, which has a free float of 17.30 per cent, has obtained approval for restructuring while five other companies-Capital Hotels, E-Tranzact International, Ekocorp, Interlinked Technology, Transcorp Hotels, Caverton Offshore Supports Group and African Paints, are expected to resolve their free float deficiencies between October and December 2017.

    Two other companies- Chellarams Plc and Infinity Trust Mortgage Plc have deadlines of February and May 2018 respectively.

    Failure by any company under free float deficiency to restructure its share capital at the expiration of the deadline or secure extension of the deadline may lead to delisting of its shares from the NSE.

    Free float deadline is usually in deference to application by the management of a company for some period to comply with the free float. However, the company is required to provide quarterly disclosure report to the NSE on the efforts being made to fully comply by the deadline.

    At the expiration of the deadline, a company is mandatorily required to have completed partial divestments or dilution of the ‘non-public’ shareholdings to free 20 per cent equity for public holding, unless the management of the NSE grants fresh waiver and extension of the deadline. In the extreme instance, a company with deficient public float may opt to delist its shares.

    Stock markets maintain minimum public float to prevent undue concentration of securities in the hands of the core investors and related interests, a situation that can make the stock to be susceptible to price manipulation. Besides, it provides the general investing public with opportunity to reasonably partake in wealth creation by private enterprises.

  • Union Bank opens N50b rights issue

    Union Bank opens N50b rights issue

    Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc yesterday opened application list for its N50 billion rights issue, paving the way for shareholders to pick up their rights. Application list for the rights issue will close on Monday October 30, 2017.

    Union Bank is raising N49.745 billion from existing shareholders through a rights issue of 12.133 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N4.10 per share. The rights issue has been pre-allotted on the basis of five new ordinary shares of 50 kobo each for every seven ordinary shares held as at the close of business on Monday August 21, 2017.

    The rights are also tradeable on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) during the offer period, giving shareholders that fully or partly renounced their rights opportunity to trade those shares at profit. Union Bank’s share price opens today at the NSE at N5.72 per share.

    The net proceeds of the rights issue will be used to enhance the bank’s regulatory capital requirement, increase working capital and grow in strategic areas that correspond to emerging opportunities in Nigeria, enhance technological platforms through strategic investments in technology and digitalization and optimize customer experience with investments in customer touch points.

    Chief Executive Officer, Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc, Mr. Emeka Emuwa, has said the new capital raising is critical to the bank’s short to medium term business objectives as the new equity funds will support the bank’s strategy to accelerate business growth and position it as a leading commercial bank in Nigeria.

    “With the commencement of the rights issue subscription, we have now officially entered a new phase of our transformation where we will be focused on accelerating business growth to deliver on our objective of becoming one of Nigeria’s leading financial institutions,” Emuwa said.

    The bank has kicked off a roadshow to sensitize shareholders with an event in Enugu last week. Shareholders’ fora will also be held in Lagos, Port-Harcourt and Abuja later this month.

    Chapel Hill Advisory Partners Limited is Lead Issuing House to the offer while FSDH Merchant Bank Limited and Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited are Joint Issuing Houses.

    Established in 1917 and listed on the NSE in 1971, Union Bank is a household name and one of Nigeria’s long-standing financial institutions.

    Key extracts of the six-month report of UBN for the period ended June 30, 2017 had shown that gross earnings rose by 23 per cent to N73.7 billion in first half 2017 as against N60.1 billion recorded in first half 2016. Profit before tax rose marginally by six per cent from N8.9 billion to N9.5 billion. Customer deposits grew by 15 per cent to N759.3 billion in 2017 as against N658.4 billion in 2016.

  • Union Bank floats N50b rights issue Wednesday

    Union Bank floats N50b rights issue Wednesday

    Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc has concluded arrangements to float its N50 billion rights issue on Wednesday as the first generation bank seeks to regain its leadership in the banking industry.

    Union Bank plans to raise N49.745 billion from existing shareholders through a rights issue of 12.133 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N4.10 per share. The rights issue has been pre-allotted on the basis of five new ordinary shares of 50 kobo each for every seven ordinary shares held as at the close of business on Monday August 21, 2017.

    Application for the rights issue will open on Wednesday and close on Monday October 30, 2017.

    Its Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Emeka Emuwa, has said the new capital raising is critical to the bank’s short to medium term business objectives as the new equity funds will support the bank’s strategy to accelerate business growth and position it as a leading commercial bank in Nigeria.

    The bank has kicked off a roadshow to sensitise shareholders with an event in Enugu last week. Shareholders’ fora will also be held in Lagos, Port-Harcourt and Abuja later this month.

    Chapel Hill Advisory Partners Limited is Lead Issuing House to the offer. FSDH Merchant Bank Limited and Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited are Joint Issuing Houses.

    Established in 1917 and listed on the NSE in 1971, Union Bank is a household name and one of Nigeria’s long-standing financial institutions.

    Key extracts of the six-month report of UBN for the period ended June 30, 2017 had shown that gross earnings rose by 23 per cent to N73.7 billion in first half 2017 as against N60.1 billion recorded in first half 2016.

    Profit before tax rose marginally by six per cent from N8.9 billion to N9.5 billion. Customer deposits grew by 15 per cent to N759.3 billion in 2017 as against N658.4 billion in 2016.

  • Union Bank gets SEC’s approval for N50b rights issue

    Union Bank gets SEC’s approval for N50b rights issue

    Nigeria’s apex capital market regulator, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), has approved the application by Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc to raise about N50 billion in new equity funds from existing shareholders.

    The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) had earlier approved the offer. The approvals from the regulatory authorities followed earlier resolutions by shareholders of the bank, mandating the board of directors to raise new capital.

    Union Bank yesterday stated that the approvals by the regulatory agencies were the green light for the raising of the tier 1 capital to proceed.

    UBN plans to raise N49.745 billion through a rights issue of 12.133 billion ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N4.10 per share. The rights issue has been pre-allotted on the basis of five new ordinary shares of 50 kobo each for every seven ordinary shares held as at the close of business on Monday August 21, 2017.

    The bank stated that it anticipates that the rights issue will be open for subscription in September 2017.

    Chief Executive Officer, Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc, Mr. Emeka Emuwa, said the approval by Sec brought the bank to the final stages of this important transaction.

    He noted that the new capital raising is critical to the bank’s short to medium term business objectives.

    “The capital raised from the rights issue will support our strategy to accelerate business growth and position Union Bank as a leading commercial bank in Nigeria,” Emuwa said.

    Chapel Hill Advisory Partners Limited is Lead Issuing House to the offer while FSDH Merchant Bank Limited and Stanbic IBTC Capital Limited are Joint Issuing Houses.

    Established in 1917 and listed on the NSE in 1971, Union Bank is a household name and one of Nigeria’s long-standing financial institutions.

    Key extracts of the six-month report of UBN for the period ended June 30, 2017 had shown that gross earnings rose by 23 per cent to N73.7 billion in first half 2017 as against N60.1 billion recorded in first half 2016. Profit before tax rose marginally by six per cent from N8.9 billion to N9.5 billion. Customer deposits grew by 15 per cent to N759.3 billion in 2017 as against N658.4 billion in 2016.