UP Appoints Abubakar Independent Director

The Board of Directors of UP, otherwise known as Unified Payments, has announced the appointment of Mr. Shehu Abubakar as an independent non-executive director.

Announcing the appointment, Chairman of the board and Group Managing Director/CEO of Access Bank Plc, Mr. Herbert Wigwe, stated that Abubakar brings to the Board of UP, three decades of unbroken experience in Nigeria’s dynamic financial industry and would provide valuable insight to the Board and the Management of UP from his wealth of experience.

He further noted that the appointment was in line with global corporate governance best practices, and one of the measures geared towards positioning UP as the most preferred E-payments services provider in Africa.

Abubakar has over 30 years of experience in the banking industry during which time he held strategic positions in different Banks. He began his career in Co-operative & Commerce Bank Plc where he served as an intern under the National Youth Service Corps scheme and worked at different times in International Merchant Bank, FSB International Bank, Fidelity Bank and Keystone Bank where he retired as an Executive Director. His banking experience covers areas such as corporate banking, public sector, corporate finance, leasing and treasury. His board experience includes being Director of a number of companies including Global Bank of Liberia, KBL Health Insurance and Cement Company of Northern Nigeria.

In the course of his career, Abubakar has attended many courses within and outside Nigeria including the Lagos Business School, Harvard Business School, Columbia Business School and Wharton Business School among others and has a wide range of experience in Strategy, Leadership & Executive Management, Customer Relations and Management and Corporate Finance among others.