United Bank for Africa (UBA) has successfully raised N178.3 billion through a rights issue, pushing its capital base above the N500 billion threshold required for Tier 1 banks with international licenses.
The bank confirmed the milestone following the conclusion of the rights offer in September 2025, marking a significant step toward compliance with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s recapitalization directive.
The latest capital raise builds on NUBA’s previous N239 billion rights issue in November 2024, which had lifted the bank’s capital base to N355.2 billion. With the additional N178 billion, UBA is now among the first banks to meet the new capital requirement ahead of the March 2026 deadline, positioning it for increased competitiveness and growth in both domestic and international markets.
UBA disclosed that it received 6,404 valid acceptances for 3,566,081,624 shares, valued at N178.3 billion. Of these, 6,399 were standard rights issue applications, while five were traded rights totaling 10,462 shares. Invalid applications amounted to 568,666,066 shares, valued at N28.43 billion, bringing the total share count—including valid and invalid applications—to 4,134,747,690 shares.
Full acceptances came from 6,293 submissions covering 453,578,211 shares, with partial acceptances totaling 106 applications for 135,274,777 shares. Traded rights accounted for five transactions during the acceptance period, totaling 10,462 shares worth N523,100. The rights issue was offered at N50 per share for 3,156,869,665 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each to shareholders registered as of 16 July 2025.
PAC Registrars and Investor Services Limited, the registrar for the rights issue, has announced that CSCS accounts will be credited by 7 February 2026, with surplus subscription funds to be refunded by 13 January 2026.
The recapitalization places UBA in a stronger position to compete as a Tier 1 bank, fund large-scale projects, and expand across its international footprint. Analysts say the strengthened capital base also sends a positive signal to investors and the broader financial market, reflecting the bank’s financial health and resilience.
According to the Register of Shareholders as of 30 June 2025, no shareholder holds more than 5 percent of the bank’s share capital, except Heirs Holdings Limited with 2,115,222,826 shares (5.15%) and UBA Nominees with 2,571,584,621 shares (6.27%). Heirs Holdings, owned by billionaire Tony Elumelu, also serves as UBA’s Chairman.
UBA’s 9-month unaudited results for 2025 showed a profit of N537.5 billion, up 2.33 percent from N525 billion in the same period of 2024. Gross earnings increased 2.96 percent to N2.5 trillion, largely driven by interest income.
With the rights issue now complete, UBA has not only surpassed the Central Bank’s N500 billion requirement but has also strengthened its capacity to sustain growth, enhance shareholder value, and maintain its position as a leading financial institution in Nigeria and across its international network.
