In March 2024 the Central Bank of Nigeria announced the new guidelines on its recapitalization policy for banks in the country.
The CBN directed commercial banks with international authorization to increase their capital base to N500bn and national banks to N200bn.
Commercial banks with national licenses must meet a N200bn threshold, while those with regional authorization are expected to achieve a N50bn capital floor.
Likewise, non-interest banks with national and regional authorizations will need to increase their capital to N20bn and N10bn as well
Within this period many banks have decided to go into the market in their quest to meet the Central Bank directives
While it is not within me to state how successful their journey has been so far but from all indications and bearing in mind the current state of the economy, It may be a tough call for some of these banks .
Weeks back I wrote an opinion about a particular bank that has impressed me so much in recent time.
I also stated that due to my ugly experience with some banks shares in the past during the Charles Soludo’s recapitalization exercise, I made up my mind never to buy the shares of any Bank again
But the recent impressive performance of UBA in the early part of 2024 made me change my mind .
The biggest advantage UBA has over and above its contemporaries in the sector is the solid base of its parent company the Heirs Holdings
Currently one of the biggest conglomerate in Nigeria and Africa
The group which recently marked its 13th year anniversary with an impressive result apart from engaging in Banking is also a major player in Power, Insurance, Hospitality, Oil and Gas, Medicals etc
An investment in UBA shares is a sure banker for the future as far as I am concerned
United Bank for Africa is one of the largest employers in the financial sector on the African continent, with 25,000 employees group-wide and serving over 45 million customers globally across over 1,000 business offices and customers touch points in 20 African countries and the United Kingdom, the United States of America, France and the United Arab Emirates ( Four Continents )
UBA provides retail, commercial and institutional banking services, leading financial inclusion and implementing cutting edge technology.
With these impressive performance year in year out, there is no gain saying that the shares of the bank will be over subscribed whenever it hits the market
I can’t just wait for the BIG ONE
Chris Kehinde Nwandu is a Journalist , Blogger , Law Graduate and UK Chartered Arbitrator.