Profit-taking, massive sell off rock Union Bank amid uncertain future

Shareholders of Union Bank engaged in a massive sell off which is the highest in the last two weeks as the lender remains for sale in the financial market.

The investors sold off 1.05 million shares on Monday at a cheaper price compared to what Union Bank stock sold for in the last two weeks in the capital market.

In the last nine days, each stock of Union Bank went for N5.6kobo per share, and during that period, stakeholders held on to their shares, with the highest volume traded put at 349,758 shares on July 12, 2021.

However, on Monday, a massive sell off among shareholders engaging in profit-taking, were willing to sell their shares for a reduced price of N5.45kobo per share.

Read also: Impending sale of Union Bank by Atlas Mara triggers investors’ demand for lender’s asset

This caused the market value of Union Bank shares to depreciate, costing the company N4.36 billion after its market capitalisation dropped from N163.07 billion of last week, to N158.70 billion on Monday.

The sell off occured amid uncertainty around Union Bank’s future as its owner, Atlas Mara, is looking for buyers to sell the Nigerian lender to. Already, Access Bank and Zenith Bank have shown interest.

Atlas Mara wants to exit Nigeria’s financial market, just as it has been exiting other African countries as well, one of which is Mozambique, where it sold its creditor firm, African Banking Corporation, to Access Bank.

Atlas Mara plans to withdraw its investment in Union Bank by selling it’s almost 50 percent majority share in the Nigerian lender at an undisclosed timeframe.

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now