Union Bank of Nigeria Plc has appointed financial advisers that will guide the bank on  the best option for  divesting its non-banking subsidiaries.
The divestment is in compliance with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) regulation for all banks to divest from their non-banking subsidiaries and focus on their core areas of expertise.
The bank notified the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) yesterday that it had appointed financial advisers for the purpose of the divestment. However, Union Bank did not mention the names of the advisers.
According to the bank, it had resolved that shares in its subsidiaries, with the exception of Union Pension Custodian Limited, which the Board resolved should be wound up, would be divested.  On the other hand, Union Bank UK Plc, which  will be retained as the only subsidiary of the bank.
Union Bank disclosed that it had already held discussions with the CBN and interested investors had carried out in-depth due diligence exercises while  rigorous bidding processes had been conducted with a view to selecting the preferred investor for each subsidiary.
“Preliminary steps are being taken to wound up Union Pension Custodian Limited while preferred bidders have been selected for Union Homes Savings and Loans Plc, Union Assurance Company  Limited and Union Capital Markets Limited and share purchase agreements have been executed with a view to making formal applications in respect of the transactions to all regulatory bodies,” the NSE quoted the bank as saying.
It was gathered that Union Bank  will undertake the same processes for divestment from Union Registrars Limited, UBN Property Limited and the rest of the subsidiaries in due course.