l-r: Former British Broadcasting Corporation(BBC) correspondent, Mr. Michael Buerk; Chief Executive, UBA Capital(Europe) Limited, representing UBA Group, Mr. Andrew Martin; and Editor, Middle East and Africa, The Banker. Mr. James King, during The Banker Awards 2017, organised by The Banker Magazine, a publication of Financial Times(FT), where UBA Group coveted five awards, including the prestigious ‘African Bank of the Year 2017’, at a ceremony in London on Wednesday
In what can best be described as the Oscars of the Financial Industry, leading Pan African financial institution, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, was earlier in the week, crowned by The Bankers’ Magazine as the “African Bank of the Year 2017.
The Bankers’ Award is a creation of the Financial Times Newspaper, The Banker Magazine is a global financial intelligence magazine that provides global bank ratings/analysis and it is the definitive reference in international banking for high level decision makers globally.
According to the magazine, the aim of the award “is to highlight industry wide excellence within the global banking community.
The organisers noted that UBA is making impressive strides in the digital space, adding that in terms of internet banking, the organisation processed 7 million transactions valued at more than N600bn in 2016.
Mobile banking processed transactions valued at N70bn over the same period. UBA has also launched eMailMoni, a service that lets customers transfer funds via e-mail, while Chat Banking allows clients to perform basic transactions through social media platforms. “For these reasons, and others, UBA is the winner of our 2017 African Bank of the Year award,” the Magazine stated.
Mr. Kennedy Uzoka, group managing director/chief executive officer, UBA Plc, who was delighted by the recognition from The Bankers said; “These awards mark another milestone for UBA Group and is a testament of the diligent execution of the bank’s strategic initiatives on customer service. Being recognized as Africa’s best bank complements positive feedback from customers and is a recognition of our improving efficiencies, service quality and innovation. I therefore dedicate it to our growing loyal corporate and retail customers, who are our essence. Given our heritage commitment to Africa’s development, we continue to impact lives through our service as well as funding to individuals, businesses and government.”
Continuing, he said “The bank remains focused on its goal of democratizing banking in Africa, leveraging on new technologies and our rich pool of talent. It is satisfying that our efforts towards leadership are yielding great results. We continue to gain market share across our chosen markets, as we deepen financial inclusion, meeting basic and complex financial service needs of the growing African population. We are Africans and determined to change the narrative of financial services in Africa and this is just the beginning,” UBA boss averred.
