Goddy Egene
Shareholders of pan-African Financial United Bank for Africa(UBA) Plc yesterday approved the N29.9 billion paid for the 2018 financial year, while hailing the consistent strong performance of the group.
The shareholders, who gave the approval at the 57th annual general meeting (AGM) in Lagos, commended the staff, management and the board on impressive performance of the financial institution.
For instance, the President, Association for the Advancement of the Rights of Nigerian Shareholders, Dr Faruk Umar, said the current management was fulfilling the vision of the founders and past leaders of UBA in creating a truly pan-African bank.
“I want to specially commend the management of UBA under the leadership of the Group Managing Director/CEO, Kennedy Uzoka, for a selfless commitment and hard-work towards building an enduring institution that we and future generations can be proud of. More so, I am impressed by the tenacity of this management in delivering on the vision of shareholders to create a leading and dominant pan-African financial service institution with global reputation and culture. Whilst it may have taken us some time to appreciate the cutting-edge vision of Chairman, Mr. Tony Elumelu, in expanding our group’s operation to Africa, we are today excited by the performance and contribution of these operations to our Group’s earnings,” he said.
Addressing shareholders, Elumelu, disclosed the upgrade of operations in the United Kingdom and formal opening of the Mali business, adding that the team in both countries were set to change the narrative of banking, and would thus strengthen the earnings growth trajectory of the Group, through their respective positive contribution.
He said: “We are optimistic about the policy environment in most African economies, where we operate, as we expect diligent implementation of fiscal policies to help stimulate inclusive economic growth, ease macro pressures and lower the cost of doing business. I am very optimistic that we will sustain the strong growth trajectory, as we continue to gain market share across Africa, leveraging our core values of Enterprise, Excellence and Execution.”
On his part, Uzoka, promised shareholders that the team remained poised to do more in the coming year.
According to him, UBA Group has one of the highest capital adequacy ratio in the industry, as its BASEL II CAR stands at 24 per cent as at December 31, 2018, thus reinforcing its capacity to support customers at all times and demonstrating the Group’s capacity to grow over the medium term.
“We are on a new cost optimisation journey and we are diligent in executing far-reaching cost-efficient initiatives, which will complement our revenue growth drive in moderating the cost-to-income ratio towards our desired target. Ultimately, we look forward to delivering superior returns to shareholders in the years ahead,” he said.
