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Divisional Head, Retail, SME Banking and E-Business, Unity Bank Plc, Mr. Olufunwa Akinmade has explained that the “raison d’etre for launching the Bank’s latest retail product called Yanga is to create a unique product proposition aimed at empowering the underbanked women entrepreneurs in Nigeria”. Akinmade, who stated this during a chat with the media, citing a recent EFInA report, said that “there are 51 million Nigerian women above 18 years of age, with over 41% of the unbanked. Out of these figures, it is estimated that there are 14-18 million female entrepreneurs – mainly in the micro SME category”. Recall that Unity Bank launched the women-focused Yanga account in November 2021 to promote financial inclusion and cater to unbanked women entrepreneurs across Nigeria in the MSME space. Therefore, the new retail product is designed to deepen its beneficial impact on Micro Small and Medium Enterprises, MSMEs operated by women in the mass-market retail space. According to Akinmade, “Re...

Nigerian maize farmers under the auspices of Maize Farmers Association of Nigeria (MAAN), have commended Nigeria’s agric-focused lender, Unity Bank Plc for its role in facilitating the financing of maize production by smallholder farmers in the country through the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The President of MAAN, Dr. Bello Abubakar gave the commendation while delivering an address at the official unveiling of 21 maize pyramids in Kaduna on Thursday. Abubakar said Unity Bank has proved to be a trusted and reliable partner of Nigerian maize farmers in their journey to sustain sufficiency in maize production in the country. “What we celebrate today would have been impossible without our finance partner, Unity Bank. The Bank has been a reliable partner in the journey and we shall continue to partner to greater heights,” Abubakar said. Through Unity Bank’s strategic partnership with the maize farmers under the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme of the CBN, wh...

Agric-focused lender, Unity Bank Plc has partnered Nigerian rice farmers under the aegis of Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria,  The event, which coincided with the flag-off of the dry season farming, was used to showcase the gains produced by rice farmers in driving self-sufficiency in rice production through the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Anchor Borrowers Programme, ABP. Speaking to newsmen at the event, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Unity Bank, Mrs. Tomi Somefun, while going down memory lane on the support of the rice farmers by the Bank since the inception of the Anchor Borrowers Programme, ABP commended the rice farmers for their unwavering belief and collaboration in the implementation of the intervention programme, adding that as the PFI (Preferred Financial Institution) for the ABP transactions, the Bank will continue to support the farmers and ensure that more smallholder farmers get the requisite financial support to boost rice production. She said: “Ou...

In its bid to demonstrate increased commitment towards promoting financial inclusion and women empowerment, Nigeria’s retail lender, Unity Bank Plc has launched Yanga Account, a new retail product designed to deepen beneficial impact on Micro Small and Medium Enterprises, MSMEs operated by women in the mass market retail space.  As a product targeted to boost the Nigerian women entrepreneurs, the initiative was intended to create Yanga Experience, from promoting the business, capacity building to health insurance scheme for Yanga Account holders.A statement by the Bank said that the benefits for signing up to Yanga Account are summed up as ‘The Yanga Experience’.  This means that as we target every woman in the mass-market retail space, the Yanga account holders will enjoy many benefits including stress-free savings and investment, access to the services of dedicated Sales Agents, Agency Banking services close to the location of their businesses, special business seminar and t...

  Nigerian lender, Unity Bank Plc has handed out a total of N10 million in prize money as business grants to 30 NYSC members in the latest edition of its flagship Youth entrepreneurship and empowerment initiative, Corpreneurship Challenge held across ten states recently.  The competition, already in its 7th edition, produced the 30 winners during the final business pitch for the 2021 Batch C Stream I corps members, which took place simultaneously across 10 NYSC camps in Lagos, Bayelsa, Ogun, Benin, Enugu, Sokoto, Akwa Ibom, Osun, Kano and Abuja. Conceived as an Entrepreneurial Development Initiative in 2019, a part of the lender’s strategic drive to penetrate the youth market, the Bank doles out cash prizes of N200,000 as a business grant for each of the second runner up, N300,000 business grant for the first runner ups and a star prize of N500,000 for each of the Corpreneurship Challenge winners.In this latest edition, some of the winners included Madukwe Juliana Uchenna, who...

Nigerian lender, Unity Bank Plc has declared gross earnings of N36.18Billion for the nine-month period ended September 30, 2021, and a 23% growth of PAT totalling N1.94Billion for the same period.   A review of the unaudited results for the 3rd Quarter of 2021 released to the Nigerian Exchange Group Limited showed that the Bank’s gross earnings of N36.18Billion represents a moderate 7% growth from N33.9 Billion recorded in the same period in 2020.   Also, with the strong performance recorded during the period under review buoyed by a 31% growth in its loan book to N265.32Billion from N202.08Billion recorded in 2020, the lender also grew its asset base by 17% to N574.56Billion from N492.02Billion recorded in December 2020.   The Bank’s Profit Before Tax for the period under review grew by 23% to N2.11Billion from N1.71Billion in the corresponding period in 2020.   This sterling performance comes amid fragile recovery and volatilities in the operati...