Union Bank Assures Stakeholders on Business Growth Agenda

The Group Managing Director of Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc, Mr. Emeka Emuwa yesterday said the bank remained focused on its 2017 priorities among which is raising Tier 1 capital to executive its growth agenda across its retail, commercial and corporate businesses.

Emuwa stated this at the 48th annual general meeting (AGM) held in Lagos, noting that following approvals from shareholders, UBN will launch a rights issue in the second quarter of 2017 to raise up to N50 billion in Tier 1 capital as it looks to accelerate business growth and position as a leading commercial bank in Nigeria.

According to him, in 2016, “we focused on executing our priorities across all our business segments, especially in the retail space, with an aggressive strategy to increase adoption of our alternate channels. Our success in this area, along with improved core interest earnings, contributed to pre-tax profit growth of six per cent compared to 2015. Our research-led, customer-centred product development strategy, coupled with an upskilled sales force and targeted marketing campaigns boosted our customer deposit base by 15 per cent compared to 2015, and led to a 73 per cent increase in new-to-bank customers.”

In his report to the shareholders, Chairman of UBN, Mr. Cyril Odu said gross earnings stood at N126 billion, up from N117 billion in 2015. Profit after tax rose from N14.3 billion to N15.4 billion.

Other highlights of the bank’s financial performance in 2016 showed that interest income grew by eight per cent to N98 billion from N90.9 billion in 2015, as a result of growth in the loan book and improved asset yields while non-interest revenue also moved up by nine per cent to N28.6 billion from N26.2 billion in 2015 owing to income from e-business channels.

Customer deposits rose by 15 per cent to N658.4 billion in 2016 from N570.6 billion in 2015, bolstered by new product offerings, increased market penetration and improved customer off take.

In 2016, UBN also witnessed expanded retail product portfolio with the launch of five new products such as UnionBetta, a savings product that allows customers to earn interest while also supporting a charitable cause.

It also recorded accelerated customer onboarding on UnionMobile and UnionOnline with over 380 per cent growth in mobile users and about 50 per cent increase in internet banking users following the launch of new platforms with expanded capabilities in 2016.