The Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc, on Friday said that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had approved its plan to divest from non-banking portfolios.
In a statement issued on Friday in Lagos, the bank said that had also notified the Nigeria Stock Exchange (NSE) of the CBN’s approval.
It said that the development was in compliance with CBN’s “Regulation 3’’ on the scope of banking activities and ancillary matters.
The CBN had in 2010 the CBN repealed the universal banking model in which banks were allowed to provide a broad range of financial services through subsidiaries.
According to the bank, “Regulation 3” restricts banks to operate as commercial, merchant or specialised banks.
The statement said the approval would make UBN to divest from non-banking and portfolio companies, with the exception of the bank’s UK branch, and operate as an international commercial bank.
In his remarks, Emeka Emuwa, the Managing Director of UBN Plc, said “our fulfillment of our “Regulation 3’’ obligation to CBN comes at an important point in the times of Union Bank’’.
“Union Bank is currently on a journey of transformation to its position as one of the leading banks in Nigeria’’.
“Our ambition today is to be reliable, to be an institution which delivers the best services possible to its customers and which consistently creates value for all its stakeholders.’’
Emuwa said the bank had therefore decided to focus its resources on core banking function as one of the many steps to enable it achieve its transformation goals
“Under the universal banking model, banks diversified into other financial businesses through subsidiaries and interests in associate companies to capture additional revenue streams’’ Emuwa said.