Banking
UBA Grows Profits by 41% in Q1 2017
By Dipo Olowookere
United Bank for Africa (UBA) on Thursday released its unaudited first quarter results, showing significant growth across major income lines.
The top Nigerian lender started off 2017 on a good note with an impressive 41 percent year-on-year growth in profit-before-tax in the first three months of the year.
Last year, the Pan African financial institution recorded a sterling performance.
UBA recorded N25.5 billion in profit before tax in the first quarter, ending March 31, 2017, compared with N18.1 billion achieved in the first quarter of 2016, boosted by strong growth in both interest and non-interest income as well as increased efficiency.
The Group also recorded a profit after tax of N22.4 billion in the first quarter, an impressive 32 percent year-on-year growth compared to N17.0 billion achieved in the corresponding period of 2016, also sustaining its strong profitability recording an annualized 19.4% Return on Average equity (RoAE).
Driven by an unprecedented 43 percent year-on-year growth in interest income, UBA Group recorded a 38 percent year-on-year growth in gross earnings to close at N101.2 billion for the three months period ending March 2017, compared to N73.7 billion recorded in the first three months of the year 2016.
Group Managing Director/CEO of UBA, Mr Kennedy Uzoka, expressed satisfaction with the bank’s impressive performance in the first quarter of 2017, despite intensifying competition and a very challenging business environment.
He said, “Our performance in the first quarter of the year strengthens our optimism on economic and business recovery in Nigeria and many of our markets across Africa. More importantly, this result is evidence of efficiency gains in our pricing, balance sheet management and operations.”
Furthermore, he said, “Driven by our balance sheet liquidity, we grew interest income by 43 percent to an unprecedented quarterly run-rate of N77 billion.
“Buoyed by improving foreign currency supply in Nigeria, remittance and trade services fees almost doubled and foreign currency trading income grew by 148 percent year-on-year, as we leveraged our Customer First initiatives to gain market share in these offerings.
“More so, it is my pleasure to report that we made further progress in our consistent retail penetration, as reflected in the 12 percent year-to-date growth in retail savings and current account deposits.
“Notwithstanding the tight interest rate environment, we recorded a 30bps reduction in cost of funds to 3.4 percent, a positive result of our customer service-led approach to low cost deposit mobilization. As at Q1, low cost savings and current accounts (CASA) represent 80 percent of our deposit funding.”
While emphasizing the increasing relevance of its African operations to its bottom line, Mr Uzoka said, “Our businesses outside Nigeria continued to wax stronger, contributing 35 percent of our earnings.
“We remained prudent in risk asset creation growing net loans by 2 percent year-to-date, as we have continued to monitor development in key sectors of the economy to take advantage of emerging bankable opportunities in due time.
“Albeit the structural challenges that exist in Africa, the opportunities and returns are immense and compelling. We will deepen our penetration across our chosen markets, as we diligently execute our strategies for consistent market share gain.”
Also speaking on UBA’s financial performance and position, the Group CFO, Mr Ugo Nwaghodoh, said the Bank’s performance in the first quarter further proves its resilience and very strong prospect of the business across its chosen markets.
He said that beyond the sterling growth in top and bottom lines, he remained particularly impressed with the quality of the earnings, which reflects the bank’s focus on the core business of financial intermediation and transaction banking.
“We remain steadfast on our prudent and proactive risk management, which helps to minimize the impact of the macroeconomic pressures on our portfolio. Our non-performing Loan ratio stood at 3.95 percent, with a 136 percent provisions coverage, inclusive of regulatory risk reserve.
“We remain well capitalized and liquid to fulfil our growth strategy; 19.4 percent BASEL II capital adequacy ratio and 41 percent liquidity ratio, which present opportunity to explore the headroom in our low LTD of 61 percent.”
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A collaboration to enable fast money transfers into Nigeria has been entered into between Flutterwave and Xoom, PayPal’s international digital money transfer service.
The partnership allows Xoom transfers to be converted by Flutterwave and settled locally in Naira, enabling quick transfers directly into recipients’ bank accounts at Access Bank, UBA, Zenith Bank, First Bank, GTBank, and additional participating banks across Nigeria.
The deal also enables Xoom’s global network with Flutterwave’s local payout infrastructure, allowing users globally to send funds directly into Nigerian bank accounts with improved speed and efficiency.
Nigeria is the leading remittance recipient in Sub-Saharan Africa, receiving over $20 billion in personal remittances in 2024. Despite this volume, receiving international payments has historically remained complex due to FX constraints and settlement delays. This collaboration helps address those challenges in a market of more than 232 million people, where the ICT sector is projected to contribute 21 per cent of GDP by 2027.
By combining Xoom’s expansive reach with Flutterwave’s local compliance and banking partnerships, the two companies are providing a more accessible financial corridor for the continent.
Xoom, a PayPal service, is a fast and secure international digital money transfer service that enables consumers to send money, pay bills, and reload phones for friends and family in approximately 160 markets globally.
As part of PayPal’s global payments ecosystem, Xoom leverages advanced fraud protection, compliance capabilities, and a trusted global network to help millions of customers move money quickly and securely across borders.
“We’re excited to have been chosen by Xoom for their Nigeria expansion. Millions of Nigerians rely on money from abroad to support everyday needs, whether it’s families receiving help from loved ones, freelancers getting paid for their work, or individuals earning income from the global economy. This helps make it easy and more reliable for people in Nigeria to receive funds and stay connected to opportunities beyond borders,” the chief executive of Flutterwave, Mr Olugbenga GB Agboola, stated.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
An initiative known as Nigeria Lightning Rounds, designed to expand funding opportunities for Nigerian startups and small businesses by connecting founders with local and international investors, has been launched by ProvidusUnity Bank, in partnership with US-based global venture firm and accelerator, gener8tor.
Scheduled to be held on July 15, 2026, Nigeria Lightning Rounds will feature carefully selected startups engaging with targeted investors who have expressed interest in supporting Nigerian innovation.
Participating founders will have the opportunity to pitch their businesses through focused 15-minute virtual sessions facilitated by gener8tor and ProvidusUnity Bank’s networks.
The program will focus on high-growth sectors including fintech, healthtech, manufacturing, sustainability, and AI, but welcomes SMEs from all industries, with intending participants urged to apply via https://www.gener8tor.com/lightning-rounds/nigeria.
“We recognise that access to capital remains one of the biggest challenges facing entrepreneurs in Nigeria. Through our partnership with gener8tor, we are creating a platform that connects promising Nigerian founders with investors who can provide the support required to scale their businesses,” the Head of Business Development at ProvidusUnity Bank, Mr Ernest Elue, stated.
“The partnership reinforces ProvidusUnity Bank’s commitment to strengthening Nigeria’s entrepreneurial ecosystem by supporting innovation, enabling access to opportunities, and creating pathways for businesses with high-growth potential,” he added.
Also commenting, the Director of Lightning Rounds at gener8tor, Ms Elizabeth Larios, said, “gener8tor is thrilled to partner with ProvidusUnity Bank to extend the Lightning Rounds model into Nigeria.
“This collaboration reflects our commitment to building equitable ecosystems and driving capital to the most promising and underrepresented entrepreneurs.”
Lightning Rounds are a signature initiative of gener8tor’s investment platform, which has facilitated thousands of investor-startup meetings globally. The format is optimised to eliminate friction, reduce bias in early-stage fundraising, and help founders secure capital from investors aligned with their mission and stage. gener8tor’s previous Lightning Rounds for Nigerian Founders in 2025 featured 18 participating Investors and led to 50 investment meetings facilitated.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The verification of the depositors of the 46 microfinance banks, whose operating licenses were revoked by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) over a week ago, has commenced.
The exercise, aimed at refunding those whose funds were trapped in the small lenders, is being conducted by the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC).
In a statement on Thursday, the agency said its staff members have been positioned at the offices of the affected banks across the country to attend to depositors.
It was disclosed that depositors of the defunct banks, who had their Bank Verification Numbers (BVNs) linked to their accounts in the failed banks, will be paid through their alternative accounts in existing banks.
However, depositors whose BVNs were not linked to their accounts in the failed banks have been encouraged to visit the affected banks’ offices with proof of account ownership, a passport photograph, verifiable means of identification (Driver’s Licence, Permanent Voter’s Card, International Passport or National ID Card) and BVN.
NDIC also stated that depositors can alternatively file their claims online through its website: www.ndic.gov.ng, to complete the Pre-Verification Claims Form by clicking on the Search Bar, and typing Pre-Verification Claims Form; opening the Form and filling in their details. They can also do so by clicking the link: https://ndic.gov.ng/ndic-pre-verification-claims-form/ or by visiting any of the NDIC offices closest to them to file their claims.
For further enquiries, the corporation can be reached on any of the following lines: 09037273810, 09038197064, 08104220807, 09064657140.
