The United Bank for Africa Plc. has has been declared winner of the African Bank of the year 2021 award by the Banker Magazine, a leading global finance news publication by the Financial Times of London.
UBA was named the best bank in Nigeria, Benin Republic, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Congo Brazzaville, Cote D’Ivoire and Gabon.
Others subsidiaries of the bank are in Guinea, Liberia, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Zambia.
UBA emerged as the best bank in 12 African countries for its solid financial performance, excellent service delivery and continuous role of facilitating rapid economic growth across the continent.
Last year, the bank won the same award in six of its subsidiaries namely Benin, Cote D’Ivoire, Chad, Liberia, Sierra Leone and Zambia.
This year, the UBA Group is breaking a record with its exceptional wins as African Bank of the Year and Bank of the Year in 13 countries.
With a total of 14 awards, it was the first time ever in the history of the almost 100 years of the banker, that any banking group recorded many wins in a single year.
At the virtual award ceremony held on Wednesday, the Middle East and Africa Editor for the Banker, John Everington, explained that a rigorous and highly analytical process was made annually to reach the decision for each Bank of the Year award, adding that the institution’s reputation for independence, authority and integrity were thoroughly applied to each submission.
“While several African banks impressed the judges this year, there was no doubt as to the worthiest recipient of the Bank of the Year for Africa – UBA Group – a clear winner across a wide range of criteria. UBA has performed impressively across its footprint with a strong financial performance across most of its markets,” Everington said.
UBA’s Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Kennedy Uzoka, who expressed delight over the recognition from The Banker said, “Like I always say, at UBA, we must be doing something right. Winning 14 total awards in 13 subsidiaries and the Bank of the Year on the African continent is a big achievement.
“The recognitions come as a reassurance that we are on track in consolidating our leadership position in Africa, as we continue to create superior value for all our stakeholders. We have our millions of customers across the globe and our many thousands of staff to thank for this. They are the very reason why we keep winning.”
Since1926, the Bank of the Year awards has been celebrating the best of global banking and is regarded as the industry standard for banking excellence.
The 2021 edition highlights institutions that have outshone their peers in performance, strategic initiatives and response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
United Bank for Africa Plc. is a leading Pan-African financial institution, offering banking services to more than 25 million customers, across over 1,000 business offices and customer touch points in 20 African countries.
With presence in the United States of America, the United Kingdom and France, UBA connects people and businesses across Africa through retail; commercial and corporate banking; innovative cross-border payments and remittances; trade finance and ancillary banking services.
