Union Bank of Nigeria Plc has notified the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and other stakeholders of changes in the composition of its board and the completion of the sale and transfer of 93.41% of its issued share capital to Titan Trust Bank Limited.
The deal, regarded as one of the largest acquisition deals in the history of Nigeria’s banking industry, was executed under a share sale and purchase agreement (SSPA).
The old board chaired by Beatrice Hamza Bassey has been dissolved for an effective take-off of a new one drawing on the new shareholding. The new board which is chaired by Farouk Mohammed Gumel, the group executive director of TGI Group, the parent company of Titan Trust, took over on Friday 3 June 2022 after a transition period that lasted for months.
Gumel is the non-executive chairman of Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA). Mr Gumel was a partner at PwC and Head the West African Advisory/Consulting business, covering Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Angola. He holds a BSc degree in Materials Technology (Leather) from the University of Northampton and an MSc degree in Clean Technology from Newcastle University. He is also a chartered accountant with Institute of Chartered Accountant of Nigeria and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.
Mudasiru Amray, who had an extensive career at Citibank and other foreign as well as local banks, took over the affairs of the bank as the Chief Executive Officer. Mr Amray, a seasoned banker, with over 25 years experience in senior management roles, will replace Emeka Okonkwo. Prior to being appointed the Chief Executive Officer for Union Bank, Mr Amray led the establishment of Titan Trust Bank Limited and became the Bank’s pioneer CEO in October 2019. He holds an MBA from the University of Santo Tomas and a Bachelor of Commerce from National College, University of Karachi.
Other members of the board are Andrew Ojei. Mr Ojei brings with him his over 21 years experience in financial services as a director on the board of the company. The Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria and Fellow and Council member of the Institute of Credit Administration of Nigeria was previously an Executive Director of Zenith Bank Plc in charge of Enterprise Risk Management. He attended the University of Lagos where he obtained a BSc. in Accounting and the Enugu State University of Science and Technology for an MBA. He attended courses at Wharton School of Business, Harvard Business School and Lagos Business School. He is also a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at INSEAD.
Abubakar Mohammed, as an entrepreneur, had over 30 years of experience managing and leading businesses across the country. He serves as the Managing Director of Syndicated Investment limited, a construction firm, and is also Chairman/CEO of GP Impex Limited, a security, contracting and trading company.
Lawrence Mackombo brings his 25 years of experience working on public and private projects in various capacities-design, construction and community development to improve the bank’s productivity. Mr Mackombo has a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Houston, Texas; an MSc in Real Estate Development from Columbia University, New York; and a Master of Architecture in History, Design and Theory from the University of Houston.
The premier bank disclosed that Titan Trust acquired 93.41 per cent of its share capital from the majority shareholders – Union Global Partners Limited, Atlas Mara Limited and others. The bank, in a statement issued on Thursday, 2 June said the deal had been executed with “receipt of all necessary regulatory approvals”. In compliance with the “NGX Rule Book and the amendments to the listing rules”, the former majority shareholders have divested while the previous board members have either retired or resigned.
Union bank
TGI Group, the parent company of Titan, has thus taken over as the majority shareholder of the bank.
“Union Bank hereby notifies the NGX that with the completion of the transaction, TGI Group, parent of TTB, now becomes the majority shareholder and core investor in Union Bank. “Union Bank hereby notifies the NGX of the completion of the divestment of the Bank’s entire shareholding interest (direct and indirect) in its subsidiary, Union Bank (UK) Plc (UBUK) to all the shareholders on the Company’s records as of March 4, 2022, pro-rata, to their existing shareholding interests in the company,” the bank said.
