Union Bank Sells UK Subsidiary
UMORU ABDULKADIR
Union Bank of Nigeria Plc said it has sold its total stake in Union Bank UK Plc to MBU Capital Limited, an investment management firm based in London.
The Bank in a statement by the Company’s Secretary, Somuyiwa Tuesday, saidt the sale owes to the bank’s strategy to geographically streamline its business operations to focus on growth opportunities in Nigeria.
He noted that the completion of the sale, which is still subject to regulatory approvals from the relevant regulatory authorities in Nigeria and the United Kingdom, was as a result of a competitive bid process, where MBU BidCo Limited (“MBU”), an acquisition vehicle wholly owned by MBU Capital Limited (“MBU Capital”), was selected as the preferred bidder.
Chief Executive Officer, Union Bank Plc, Emeka Emuwa, said: “As the banking landscape shifts towards digital and agency banking to drive financial inclusion, the Nigerian market presents robust long-term opportunities for Union Bank.
This divestment allows us channel our focus and capital towards mining those opportunities fully. Through the sale, we are better positioned to deliver greater value to the organization and its stakeholders as well as continue to build the future of banking in Nigeria.
The terms of the sale of UBUK delivers substantial value to our shareholders, while also entrusting its customers and trading partners to a high-quality financial services institution who will work with existing management to deliver a stronger and more profitable entity.”
Also, commenting of the sale/purchase agreement, Founder and CEO of MBU Capital, Mohammed Iqbal said; “We are delighted to announce the acquisition of Union Bank UK, subject to regulatory approval. We see a huge opportunity to build on UBUK’s strengths in international markets to create a new-style bank which is focused on the needs of UK and international SMEs and entrepreneurs. Many of these customers are seeking a bank which truly understands the needs of entrepreneurial, fast-growing businesses.
We believe that our acquisition and vision for UBUK offers the potential for significant growth for the bank. We look forward to working with our new colleagues at UBUK to continue to service the needs of its clients. We also look forward to sustaining and deepening relationships with UBUK’s existing trading partners.”
According to the statement, in the course of the deal, Chapel Hill Denham Advisory Limited acted as Financial Advisers while White & Case LLP and Udo Udoma & Belo-Osagie acted as UK Legal Advisers and Nigeria Legal Advisers respectively to Union Bank.
It also disclosed that Syndeo Capital Limited (led by Mandeep Ahluwalia) acted as Advisers to MBU Capital with Akin Gump LLP as Legal Advisers and PwC as Financial and Tax Advisers.
Established in 1917 and listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in 1971, Union Bank is a household name and has a network of over 300 Sales and Service across the country
It mainly focuses on Retail, Commercial and Corporate Banking businesses. In addition to standard current and savings product portfolio, it has also launched pioneering products into the Nigerian retail market including Union Korrect, Union Goal and Union Betta.
At the close of trading on the NSE floor today, it sold a total of 552,038 units of shares estimated at N3.23 billion across 45 deals, while it also emerged among the 23 losers, as its share price depreciated by 30 kobo to close at N5.90 per share.
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