Allied Bank of Nigeria is a commercial bank in Nigeria, headquartered at the Marina on Lagos Island, Lagos. It has been operating in Nigeria since 1917

Overview

Allied Bank is a large commercial bank that provides services to individuals, small and medium-sized companies, as well as large corporations and organizations. In July 2009, it was ranked the 556th largest bank in the world and the 14th largest bank in Africa. As of March 31, 2018, the bank's asset base was estimated at 1381 billion Naira ($4.1 billion). Shareholders' equity at that time was estimated at 286 billion Naira ($851 million).

The long history of United Bank of Nigeria dates back to 1917 when it was first established as a colonial bank.

In 1925, the bank became known as Barclays DCO (Dominion, Colonial and Overseas) as a result of its acquisition by Barclays. Following the independence of Nigeria and the enactment of the Companies Act 1968, the bank was incorporated as Barclays Limited of Nigeria (BBNL, established in 1969).

Between 1971 and 1979, the bank underwent a series of changes, including listing on the NSE and share acquisitions/transfers facilitated by the Nigerian Enterprise Promotion Act (1972 and 1977); this led to its evolution into a new wholly Nigerian-owned entity. To reflect the new ownership structure and to comply with the Companies and Related Matters Act, 1990, it adopted the name United Bank of Nigeria Limited (UBN "Bank" or "United Bank").

In 1993, following its privatization/commercialization process, the Federal Government divested by selling its controlling stake (51.67%) to private investors. As a result, United Bank became wholly owned by Nigerian citizens and private sector organizations. During the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) banking consolidation policy, United Bank of Nigeria acquired the former Universal Trust Bank Plc and Broad Bank Ltd. It absorbed its one-time subsidiary, Union Merchant Bank Ltd.

UBN divested all its non-core banking subsidiaries in line with its core banking business model, in accordance with the CBN's Section 3 provisions.

Following the 2009 banking crisis and CBN's intervention through Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), the bank was recapitalized in 2012 with an injection of US $500 million by Union Global Partners Limited (UGPL), a consortium of local and international investors.

UGPL acquired a 65% stake in the bank, and in the last quarter of 2014, AMCON's remaining 20% stake was acquired by Atlas Mara.

In December 2021, the bank announced that it had received notification from UGPL, Atlas Mara Limited and other major shareholders agreeing to transfer the equity interest in UGPL to Titan Trust Bank. The majority shareholder of UGPL transferred a combined 93.41% of the issued share capital held by UGPL to Titan Bank. After receiving all regulatory approvals, the transaction was completed in June 2022, followed by a change of control. Titan Trust Bank became the majority shareholder of UGPL. (Titan Trust Bank is majority-owned by Nigerian conglomerate TGI Group).

The acquisition of the shares triggered the legal and regulatory requirements for Titan Trust Bank to execute a Compulsory Takeover Offer (MTO) from the other shareholders of Union Bank in November 2022, followed by the crowding out of the minority shareholders through an Arrangement Plan in May 2023. Following the acquisition of all the shares of United Bank of Nigeria, an application was made to delist the shares of United Bank of Nigeria from the Nigerian Stock Exchange, which was approved in November 2023.

Following a Court-ordered General Meeting of Shareholders on December 28, 2023 and subsequent approval of the Plan, the formal merger process between United Bank of Nigeria and Titan Trust Bank was concluded, with United Bank of Nigeria existing as a surviving entity.

Ownership

Titan Trust Limited acquired an 89.4% stake in Union Bank from anchors including Atlas Mara and Union Global Partners Limited, but later increased the stake to 93.4%.

Branch Network

The bank has a vast network of interconnected branches in all states of Nigeria.

Management

The bank's activities are overseen by the Board of Directors, Yetunde Oni and Mannir Ringim.

The Management Board is headed by Yetunde Oni, who serves as the bank's CEO and Managing Director. She resumed her role as managing director and CEO of the bank in January 2024.