UBA posts $2.4 billion gross earnings; Tony Elumelu raises stake

United Bank for Africa Plc, a leading pan-African financial services giant led by Nigerian billionaire businessman Tony Elumelu, closed its 2025 financial year with N3.23 trillion ($2.4 billion) in gross earnings, underlining its standing as one of Africa’s most important banking groups and giving fresh weight to Chairman Tony Elumelu’s growing commitment to the lender.

The results, captured in the group’s audited 2025 financial statements, show a bank that continued to generate strong income across its core businesses even as operating pressures weighed on the final profit line. Interest income remained the main driver, rising to N2.65 trillion in 2025 from N2.41 trillion ($1.77 billion) in 2024, a 9.48 percent increase that helped sustain earnings strength across the group.

Fees and commission income added N532.95 billion ($392.4 million), while other operating income rose to N48.54 billion ($35.7 million), reflecting the breadth of UBA’s earnings base across lending, transaction banking, and its wider financial services operations. Despite that strong topline showing, the lender reported profit after tax of N404.6 billion ($298 million), with significant non-recurring items weighing on the bottom line. Even so, support from its pan-African subsidiaries helped preserve profitability and reinforced its regional structure.

Regional spread boosts UBA profits

That regional spread has become one of UBA’s clearest advantages. Combined profit from foreign operations climbed to N312 billion ($229.8 million), up from N223 billion ($164.2 million), showing how much the bank now depends on earnings generated outside Nigeria. West African operations posted profit growth of 53 percent, while East and Central Africa recorded a 61 percent jump, giving the group broader income support at a time when market conditions remain uneven across the continent.

The scale of that contribution is now hard to ignore. International operations account for more than half of total group assets, revenue, and profit, a sign that UBA’s long-running expansion across Africa is delivering financial depth as well as geographic reach. For a bank that operates in 24 countries across four continents, including the United Kingdom, the United States, France and the U.A.E., the strategy has steadily shifted from ambition to measurable financial strength.

UBA also remains the only African financial services group providing wholesale banking services in both New York and London, a distinction that continues to separate it from many of its regional peers and supports its position as one of the continent’s most connected banking institutions. For Elumelu, 2025 was not only about operating performance but also about ownership. The billionaire businessman significantly increased his stake in the lender, deepening his financial exposure to the institution he has helped shape for years.

UBA assets rise to $24.4 billion; Elumelu raises stake to 14.27%

As of Dec. 31, 2025, Elumelu held 6.31 billion shares in UBA through direct and indirect interests, sharply higher than the 2.54 billion shares recorded a year earlier. His direct holding rose to 1.52 billion shares from 194.67 million, while indirect holdings increased to 4.79 billion shares from 2.35 billion. That combined position gives him a 14.27 percent stake in the bank, valued at N347.1 billion ($255.6 million) at the time of drafting this report.

UBA’s balance sheet also reflected that confidence. Total assets rose from N30.32 trillion ($22.3 billion) as of Dec. 31, 2024, to N33.17 trillion ($24.42 billion) by the end of 2025, supported by a stronger capital base following its recent rights issue. Share capital and share premium stood at N504 billion ($371.1 million), while shareholders’ funds climbed to N4.25 trillion ($3.12 billion), giving the bank room to support lending growth and manage future risks. Its capital adequacy ratio came in at 23.2 percent, leaving a solid buffer for expansion and balance sheet protection.

For investors, the story is increasingly clear: UBA is not relying on one market, one income stream, or one business line. Its strength is coming from scale, reach, and the ability to keep earnings flowing across borders. With $2.4 billion in gross earnings and its chairman raising his stake to more than 14 percent, the message from 2025 is one of confidence—both from the institution itself and from the man most closely tied to its future.