Titan Trust Bank has become the majority shareholder in Union Bank of Nigeria Plc. This followed an agreement by Union Global Partners Limited, Atlas Mara Limited, and other majority shareholders to divest 89.39 percent shareholding in Union Bank to Titan Trust Bank. This deal will see current core investors in Union Bank, Union Global Partners Ltd (64.98%), Atlas Mara (25.53%) and other shareholders divest their core holdings totalling 89.39% in Union Bank to Titan Trust Bank.
Union Bank in a statement issued on Thursday by the company Secretary, Somuyiwa Sonubi, confirmed the development.
The statement reads: “The Board of Directors of Union Bank of Nigeria Plc (“Union Bank”) today announced that it has received a notification from Union Global Partners Ltd. (“UGPL”, the holder of majority shareholding in Union Bank) of the execution of a Share Sale and Purchase Agreement between UGPL, certain other existing shareholders of Union Bank (as Sellers) and Titan Trust Bank Limited (as Purchaser) for the sale of an aggregate 89.39% of the issued share capital of Union Bank held by the Sellers, to the Purchaser (“the Transaction”).
“Completion of the Transaction is subject to obtaining applicable regulatory approvals and the fulfillment of certain conditions precedent.”
Commenting on the transaction, Mrs. Beatrice Hamza Bassey said: “On behalf of the Board, we congratulate all the parties involved in reaching this phase of the transaction and the Board looks forward to supporting the next steps to ensure a seamless completion of the process following regulatory approvals.”
“We are grateful to our current investors whose significant and consequential investments over the past nine years facilitated the transformation of Union Bank, one of Nigeria’s oldest and storied institutions. Today, the bank is well-positioned with an innovative product offering, a growing customer base of over six million and consistent year on year profitability. This is a solid foundation for our incoming investors to build on as we move into a new era for the Bank,” she added.
Established in 1917 and listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in 1971, Union Bank is one of Nigeria’s long-standing and most respected financial institutions. The Bank has a network of over 280 Sales and Service Centers across Nigeria. The bank’s total Assets increased significantly by 21% from N1,711.7 billion in 2019 to N2,073.8 billion in 2020 while Profit Before Tax (PBT) grew by 3% from N24.7 billion in 2019 to N25.4 billion in 2020.
According to the Chair of Titan Trust Bank, Mr. Tunde Lemo, OFR; “The Board of Titan Trust Bank and our key stakeholders are delighted as this transaction marks a key step for Titan Trust in its strategic growth journey and propels the institution to the next level in the Nigerian banking sector. The deal represents a unique opportunity to combine Union Bank’s longstanding and leading banking franchise with TTB’s innovation-led model which promises to enhance the product and service offering for our combined valued customers.”
Titan Trust Bank is one of the newest national commercial banks in Nigeria, founded in 2019.
Chief Executive Officer, Union Bank, Mr. Emeka Okonkwo said: “This transaction marks a significant milestone in the journey of our 104-year old Bank. Whilst thanking our current investors for their unwavering commitment to the Bank over the years, we welcome our new core investor, TTB. We recognize the strategic fit between the two institutions and expect that this deal will deliver the best outcome for our employees, customers and stakeholders. We look forward to collectively writing the next exciting chapter for Union Bank.”
Chief Executive Officer, Titan Trust Bank, Mr. Mudassir Amray said: “After completing over two years of operations with aggressive organic growth, we are excited to have an opportunity for a significant leap forward in market share. UBN’s widespread presence, state of the art technology platform, quality staff and strong brand loyalty fits well with our synchronized modular strategy. We look forward to delivering superior results for the benefit of our staff, customers, shareholders, and stakeholders.”
There has been rumours of core investors in Union Bank looking to divest from the bank. One of the core investors, Atlas Mara has been looking to divest from Africa since its misfortunes in its investments in Africa. It has been offloading its assets in Africa – the sale of its assets in Botswana, Zimbabwe and Zambia e.t.c
In 2014, Atlas Mara’s Bob Diamond had started a bullish acquisition spree of financial assets in Africa. It bought a 20.9% stake in Union Bank of Nigeria for $270 million, $265 million purchase of sub-Saharan African bank group ABC and the April acquisition of 77% of the Development Bank of Rwanda’s commercial arm.
