Banking
S&P Affirms UBA’s ‘B/B’ Ratings with Stable Outlook
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Leading rating firm in the world, S&P Global Ratings, has announced affirming its ‘B/B’ and ‘ngBBB/ngA-2’ ratings on United Bank of Africa (UBA) Plc.
A statement issued by the rating agency on Monday disclosed that it believes the tier-1 lender in Nigeria will continue to maintain sound earnings and asset quality over the next 12 months, despite the sluggish economy in its operating environment a and the high economic risk in other parts of Africa where the bank operates.
Also in the statement, S&P affirmed its stable outlook on the financial institution, explaining that the “stable outlook reflects that on Nigeria and our expectation that the group’s financial profile will remain broadly stable in the next 12 months.”
In its earnings for third quarter of this year, the lender increased its profit after tax to N61 billion from N49.5 billion in Q3 of 2016, while its gross earnings closed at N334 billion compared with N265.5 billion 12 months ago.
S&P Global Ratings, in its statement yesterday, noted that it affirmed its long- and short-term Nigeria national scale ratings on UBA at ‘ngBBB/ngA-2’.
“The affirmation reflects our view that the group will maintain its top-tier competitive position in the Nigerian banking sector. UBA benefits from a good franchise in the corporate and retail segments in Nigeria and increasing geographic diversification. Overall, we think the group has an adequate business position.
“Furthermore, we believe that the group will display relatively stable asset quality and good earnings generation over the next 12 months.
“We assess the group’s capital and earnings as moderate under our risk-adjusted capital (RAC) framework. We estimate UBA’s RAC ratio (before adjustments for diversification) at 5.2% for year-end 2016. We project that the RAC ratio will remain broadly stable over the next 12 months on the back of the group’s good earning capacity and expected stable cost of risk.
“Our forecast assumptions include loan growth of around 20% (factoring in the expected depreciation of the Nigerian naira), stable interest margins, cost control, and moderate dividend distribution. On June 30, 2017, UBA’s capital adequacy ratio was 19.7%, which is well above the regulatory minimum of 15%, and we believe it will remain stable over the next 12 months.
“We assess UBA’s risk position as adequate, which reflects our expectation that the group will exhibit broadly stable asset quality in the next 12 months. The group’s cost of risk increased to 2.1% in 2016 compared with 0.5% in 2015, before declining to 1.2% at end-June 2017.
“This ratio compares well with the sector average. However, nonperforming loans (NPLs; loans overdue by 90 days or more) ratio increased to 4.2% at end-June from 3.9% at end-2016 (1.7% at year-end 2015) and was hit hard by the foreign currency shortages, which mainly affected the general commerce and oil and gas trading companies.
“The Central Bank of Nigeria allowed banks to write-off fully provisioned NPLs the same year, without prejudice to the prudential guideline that requires banks to retain fully provisioned NPLs for one year before write-off. This was aimed at avoiding accumulation of NPLs, since banks were expected to record additional provisions in the context of the naira devaluation in 2016. As a result, UBA’s NPL coverage by provisions dropped to 60.1% at end-June 2017 from 83.3% at end-2016, after reaching about 100% on Sept. 30, 2016.
“NPLs outside Nigeria accounted for 60% of the group’s total NPLs. We anticipate that credit losses will decline to about 1% in 2017-2018, while the NPL ratio will stabilize at around 4%-5% over the same period. Similar to other Nigerian banking groups, the UBA group extends loans in U.S. dollars (about 35% of total loans at end-2016), but this risk appears to be mitigated by receivables in the same foreign currency.
“We consider the group’s funding to be above average and its liquidity to be adequate, owing to its steady and relatively low-cost, retail-deposit-based funding profile. Similar to its Nigerian peers, UBA exhibits contractual asset-liability mismatches, including in foreign currency.
“Despite tightening monetary policy in Nigeria in 2016, the group maintained a stable cost of funding at about 3.6% as of end-June 2017. The group reported a net stable funding ratio of 143% as of the same date. Broad liquid assets covered short-term wholesale funding at about 4.5x as of the same date. UBA issued a $500 million Eurobond in May 2017. We understand that the group has sufficient U.S. dollar liquidity to meet its financial obligations in 2017.
“The stable outlook on UBA reflects that on Nigeria and our expectation that the group’s financial profile will remain broadly stable in the next 12 months.
“We would lower the ratings on UBA if we lowered the rating on Nigeria or observed a higher-than-expected deterioration in the group’s assets quality indicators over the next 12 months. We would also lower the ratings on UBA in the unlikely scenario of a significant drop in capitalization, leading to a RAC ratio (before adjustments for diversification) below 3%.
“An upgrade is unlikely in the next 12 months because it would hinge on an upgrade of the sovereign and a decline in the economic risks faced by the Nigerian banking sector or a significant strengthening of capitalization, as reflected by a RAC ratio (before adjustments for diversification) sustainably exceeding 7%,” the statement said.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The creative industry in Nigeria may have nothing to worry about with the likes of Stanbic IBTC Bank around the corner.
The financial institution, which has not hidden its love for the sector, has promised to continue with its strategic investment in the country’s designers and artists.
Speaking at an event, An Evening of Fashion, Art & Lifestyle, the Executive Director for Personal and Private Banking at Stanbic IBTC Bank, Mr Olu Delano, represented by the Head of its Private Banking Segment, Ms Layo Ilori-Olaogun, said the company was proud to be associated with the programme, which it also sponsored.
“At Stanbic IBTC, we recognise Nigeria’s creative sector as a vital driver of economic diversification, employment, and global cultural influence.
“We are proud to support the individuals behind these platforms that elevate African excellence and provide visionary talents the visibility that they deserve.
“Nights like this reaffirm our commitment to continued strategic investment in our artists and designers,” he stated.
The invitation-only ceremony, which was held at The Garden, Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos, hosted by Africa’s leading luxury fashion house, 2207bytbally, in collaboration with the acclaimed art collective Torrista, brought together high-net-worth individuals, art collectors, designers, media personalities, and luxury brand executives for an unparalleled showcase of creativity and sophistication.
The evening opened with a breathtaking runway presentation featuring three signature segments from the Evolve collection by 2207bytbally: Denim, Ethnic, and 2207 Prints. Each piece exemplified the meticulous craftsmanship, bold innovation, and cultural storytelling that has established the brand as a standard-bearer in African luxury fashion.
Complementing the couture was a curated exhibition by Torrista, transforming the venue into an immersive gallery. Commissioned artworks exploring themes of culture, femininity, and evolution created a robust visual dialogue with the collections, demonstrating the seamless harmony that can result when fashion and fine art converge.
“This evening was about more than clothes or canvases; it was about showing the world that African creativity is limitless. When fashion and art share the same space, magic happens, and tonight, Lagos felt that magic,” the Creative Director of 2207bytbally, Tolu Bally, stated.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The six edition of the Hackaholics of Wema Bank Plc has produced 20 top finalists shared equally between two streams, Ideathon and Hackathon.
The Hackathon finalists are Rapid DEV, Secure IT, Neurafeed, Trust Lock Babcock, Pulse Track, IlluminiTrust, Trust Lock FUTA, Fix Fraud AI, KASH Flow and VOC AI.
The Ideathon finalists include PLOY, Fertitude, VarsityScape, Mama ALERT, StockMed, Chao, All Arbitrate, FarmSlate, Sane AI and Cycle X.
They emerged after a two-day pre-pitch held on December 16 and 17, 2025, for the grand finale slated for Friday, December 19, 2025.
They grand finale of Hackaholics 6.0 will convene the top players in Africa’s tech and innovation ecosystem, creating an avenue for these finalists to not only put their creativity to the ultimate test but also give their solutions visibility to potential investors for additional funding opportunities beyond the prizes to be won.
The prizes to be won for the Ideathon include N25 million for the winner, N20 million for the first runner-up, N15 million for the second runner-up and N5 million each for two women-led teams.
In the Hackathon category, the first to fourth-place winners will receive N20 million, N15 million, N10 million and N5 million, respectively.
The pre-pitch saw the top 43 contenders battle in a game of innovation and problem solving, presenting compelling pitches for a chance to make it to top 10 in their respective streams.
After a rigorous stretch of pitches and presentations, the top 20 emerged, securing their spot in the grand finale of Hackaholics 6.0.
“Hackaholics started off as a hackathon and morphed into an ideation. For Hackaholics 6.0, the sixth edition, we decided to give both the builders of new solutions and the refiners of existing ones, an opportunity to make meaningful impact.
“For us at Wema Bank, we understand that innovation isn’t just building from scratch. Sometimes, it’s looking at what exists and developing new ways to optimise that and create more efficiency. This is the idea behind our two-stream Ideathon-Hackathon structure.
“Every year, Hackaholics shows us just how eager and motivated Nigerian youth are when it comes to exploring creativity and innovation, and we are honoured to be the institution that provides them with the platform and resources to put this drive to good use.
“We toured seven cities, indulged 1,460 participants and discovered hundreds of remarkable ideas; some of which needed some refining and some of which deserved to move to the next stage.
“For those who needed to go back to the drawing board, we provided useful guidance and for the top contenders, we were able to shortlist to the top 43, who proceeded to the pre-pitch. To every participant, Wema Bank is proud of you. This is just the beginning,” the chief executive of Wema Bank, Mr Moruf Oseni, said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) says it will enforce penalties against designated banks that delay the remittance of customs revenue, in a move aimed at strengthening transparency and safeguarding government earnings.
This was disclosed in a statement on the NCS official account on X, formerly known as Twitter and signed by its spokesman, Mr Abdullahi Maiwada, who said the delays undermine the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.
“The Nigeria Customs Service has noted instances of delayed remittance of customs revenue by some designated banks following reconciliation of collections processed through the B’odogwu platform,” the statement read.
“Such delays constitute a breach of remittance obligations and negatively impact the efficiency, transparency, and integrity of government revenue administration.
“In line with the provisions of the Service Level Agreement executed between the Nigeria Customs Service and designated banks, the Service hereby notifies stakeholders of the commencement of enforcement actions against banks found to be in default of agreed remittance timelines.”
Mr Maiwada disclosed that any bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed timeline will be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the period of the delay.
He added that affected banks would be formally notified of the delayed amounts, the applicable penalty, and the deadline for settlement.
“Accordingly, any designated bank that fails to remit collected Customs revenue within the prescribed period shall be liable to penalty interest calculated at three per cent above the prevailing Nigerian Interbank Offered Rate for the duration of the delay.
“Affected banks will receive formal notifications indicating the delayed amount, applicable penalty, and the timeline for settlement,” the statement read.
-
Feature/OPED6 years agoDavos was Different this year
-
Travel/Tourism9 years ago
Lagos Seals Western Lodge Hotel In Ikorodu
-
Showbiz3 years agoEstranged Lover Releases Videos of Empress Njamah Bathing
-
Banking8 years agoSort Codes of GTBank Branches in Nigeria
-
Economy3 years agoSubsidy Removal: CNG at N130 Per Litre Cheaper Than Petrol—IPMAN
-
Banking3 years agoFirst Bank Announces Planned Downtime
-
Banking3 years agoSort Codes of UBA Branches in Nigeria
-
Sports3 years agoHighest Paid Nigerian Footballer – How Much Do Nigerian Footballers Earn