Union Bank board dissolved after Titan Trust takeover

Union Bank Nigeria Plc has announced the dissolution of its board and a new chief executive officer.

The new CEO is Titan Trust Bank’s managing director, Mudassir Amray, according to a note to the Nigerian Exchange Limited.

The decisions came after Titan Bank concluded the takeover of Union Bank, Nigeria’s second oldest bank.

The bank has also appointed a new chairman and three directors.

They are Farouk Gumel, chairman, and Andrew Ojel, Abubakar Mohammed and Lawrence Mackombo, directors.

Titan Trust Bank purchased 93.4 per stake of Union Bank. With the new acquisition, 10 of 13 members of Union Bank have exited the company.

The appointment of Mr Amray will take effect from June 2.

Mudassir Amray

Mr Amray, a seasoned banker with well-rounded exposure of over 25 years in senior management roles, will replace Emeka Okonkwo.

“Prior to being appointed the Chief Executive Officer for Union Bank, Mr Amray led the establishment of Titan Trust Bank Limited and Mr Amray became the Bank’s pioneer CEO in October 2019,” the notice said.

Mr Mudassir holds an MBA from the University of Santo Tomas and a Bachelor of Commerce from National College, University of Karachi.

Farouk Gumel

Mr Gumel holds the position of Executive Group Director for TGI Group also, Chairman, Board of Directors at Wacot Rice Ltd, a subsidiary company of TGI Group, and Non Executive Chairman at the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).

Mr Gumel was a partner at PwC and Head the West African Advisory/Consulting business, covering Nigeria, Ghana, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Angola.

Mr Gumel holds a BSc. in Materials Technology (Leather) from the University of Northampton and an MSc, in Clean Technology from Newcastle University.

“He is also a chartered accountant with Institute of Chartered Accountant of Nigeria and a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales,” it said.

Andrew Ojel

Mr Ojel brings his over 21 years of experience in financial service as he sits as a director on the board of the company.

The Fellow of The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria and Fellow and Council Member of The Institute of Credit Administration of Nigeria was previously an Executive Director of Zenith Bank Plc in charge of Enterprise Risk Management.

Mr Ojel attended the University of Lagos where he obtained a BSc. in Accounting and the Enugu State University of Science and Technology for an MBA.

“He has also attended courses at Wharton School of Business, Harvard Business School and Lagos Business School. He is also a graduate of the Advanced Management Program at INSEAD,” the notice said.

Abubakar Mohammed

Mr Abubakar is an entrepreneur with over 30 years of experience managing and leading businesses across the country.

He serves as the Managing Director of Syndicated Investment limited, a construction firm, and Chairman/CEO of GP Impex Limited, a security, contracting and trading company.

Lawrence Mackombo

Mr Mackombo brings his 25 years of experience working on public and private projects in various capacities-design, construction, and community development to improve the bank’s productivity.

“Mr Mackombo has a Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Houston, Texas; an MSc in Real Estate Development from Columbia University, New York; and a Master of Architecture in History, Design and Theory from the University of Houston,” it said.

Union Bank appoints Buhari’s former minister into board

Union Bank of Nigeria has strengthened its board of directors with the appointment of former Nigerian minister, Aisha Abubakar, following regulatory approval.

Abubakar had served as Minister in Nigeria twice under the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari, first as Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment between 2015 and 2018.

Her portfolio was changed in 2018 to Minster for Women Affairs and Social Development, a position she held till 2019 when she left the cabinet.

In a statement obtained on Thursday, Ripples Nigeria gathered that Abubakar was appointed as an Independent Non-Executive Director, effective September 9, 2021.

Abubakar will be providing independent oversight, including constructive challenge to the executive directors of Union Bank till she vacates the role.

Prior to her political appointment, Abubakar had worked at Continental Merchant Bank Ltd., African Development Bank and African International Bank.

In the statement announcing her appointment, the Chief Executive Officer, Emeka Okonkwo said, “I am pleased to welcome our new Independent Non-Executive Director, Ms. Aisha Abubakar to the Board.

“We look forward to drawing from her wealth of experience and fresh perspectives as we continue to execute our vision to be Nigeria’s most reliable and trusted partner.”

Union Bank staff jailed for diverting N116m customers’ funds

The Lagos Zonal Office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has secured the conviction of Temitope Oluwasanmi and Augustine Olayinka before Justice Mojisola Dada of a Special Offences Court, Lagos State High Court, Ikeja.

The convicts were arraigned in December 2017 on a six-count charge bordering on conspiracy, stealing and fraudulent diversion of funds to the tune of N116 million (One Hundred and Sixteen Million Naira) to which they pleaded “not guilty” prompting commencement of trial.

According to a statement made available to Ripples Nigeria by Wilson Uwujaren, head, media and publicity of EFCC, Oluwasanmi, an employee of Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) Plc, who was arrested by operatives of the EFCC in October 2017, following a petition from the bank was alleged to have diverted the N116 million to the accounts of three friends: Augustine Olayinka, Oginni Opeyemi and Ogbaro Oluwaseyi. Opeyemi and Oluwaseyi remained at large.

In the course of the trial, prosecuting counsel, Bilikisu Bala Buhari, called three witnesses and tendered several documents to prove the case against them.

Delivering judgement on Friday, March 5, 2021, Justice Dada found the first and second defendants guilty of count one bordering on conspiracy, and sentenced them to three years imprisonment.

The first defendant was further convicted of counts two, three and four and sentenced to 10 years imprisonment.

He was also found guilty of count six bordering on retention of criminal proceeds and sentenced to three years imprisonment, while the second defendant was found guilty of count five bordering on fraudulent false accounting and sentenced to seven years imprisonment.

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