By Kayode Fasua
As a crescendo to raging speculations from boardroom hints, Titan Trust Bank Limited (TTB) has finally wrapped up the deal enabling it to purchase a controlling stake in Nigeria’s second-oldest lender, Union Bank of Nigeria.
The TTB authorities confirmed this on Thursday in a regulatory filing, almost half a year after an agreement was reached by both parties.
The TTB, backed up by a former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) deputy governor, Tunde Lemo, according to reports, initially acquired 89.4 per cent interest in Union Bank from a pool of stakes from exiting major investors which include British Virgin Islands-based Atlas Mara and Union Global Partners Limited; but now, it has upped the stake to 93.4 per cent.
Though there is no official confirmation yet that Union Bank would be re-named, top sources hinted The Liberation News that the such was most likely under the corcumstance.
“With the completion of the transaction, TGI Group, parent of TTB, now becomes the majority shareholder and core investor in Union Bank,” a document from the TTB asserted.
The ownership transfer, however, does not include Union Bank UK, a subsidiary of Union Bank of Nigeria, which had earlier been sold off, with the proceeds of divestment given all the shareholders of as of March 4, 2022.
Meanwhile, in compliance with the reality of the change of ownership, the members of Union Bank’s board have reportedly exited the bank.
