By Babajide Komolafe

United Bank for Africa, UBA Plc, has announced the retirement of its Group Chairman, Tony Elumelu   and the appointment of Mr. Emmanuel Nnorom as his successor. 

In a statement announcing the board leadership change filed with the Nigerian Exchange, NGX, the bank stated: “Mr. Tony O. Elumelu, Group Chairman of UBA, will  retire from the Board of Directors of UBA  with effect from 21 August 2026, upon the completion of the maximum 12-year tenure  prescribed for Non-Executive Directors of Banks by the Central Bank of Nigeria.

“At its meeting held on 6 July 2026, the Board accepted Mr. Elumelu’s retirement letter and elected Mr. Emmanuel N. Nnorom, a Non-Executive  Director of the Bank, as his successor, with effect from 21 August 2026.

“The Board places on record its profound appreciation to Mr. Elumelu for his visionary leadership and exceptional contribution to the growth, transformation and institutional strength of the UBA Group.

“Mr. Nnorom is a chartered accountant with over forty years’ experience in banking, finance and audit. He brings to the role, extensive leadership  experience and deep institutional knowledge of UBA.”

Commenting on his retirement, Mr. Tony O. Elumelu said: “Serving United Bank for Africa has been one of the great privileges of my career. UBA has a unique competitive position, across Africa and globally, and I leave the Board with great confidence in UBA’s future. Emmanuel Nnorom is a leader of integrity, experience and sound judgement, and I am confident that the Bank will continue to thrive under his leadership.

Speaking on his appointment, Nnorom said: “I am honoured by the trust the Board has placed in me and deeply conscious of the legacy I inherit. I look forward to working with my  colleagues on the Board, Management and our staff across all our markets to sustain UBA’s momentum and continue delivering long-term value to our shareholders, customers and stakeholders.”

By Rosemary Iwunze

As the insurance recapitalisation deadline of July 31st 2026 draws near, the National Insurance Commission, NAICOM, has stated that it will not re-license any company with outstanding claims. 

In a letter to all Managing Director/CEOs of insurance companies, issued yesterday, titled: “Regulatory Directive – Settlement of Discharged Claims as A Precondition for Re-Licensing Pursuant to the Ongoing Recapitalization Exercise” NAICOM noted that the move is part of  efforts to ensure that the exercise achieves its intended objectives.

The letter stated: “The ongoing recapitalization exercise is aimed at strengthening the financial capacity, resilience, and overall stability of the insurance sector. As part of efforts to ensure that this exercise achieves its intended objectives and enhances public confidence in the insurance market, all insurance companies are hereby directed to fully settle all outstanding duly discharged claims. Please note that this is a mandatory pre condition for being certified as having fulfilled the statutory recapitalization requirement and the Commission’s regulatory clearance.

“Accordingly, all insurance companies are required to Identify, reconcile all discharged claims currently outstanding in their records and thereafter, ensure full settlement of these claims to beneficiaries without further delay. A report of the reconciled discharged claims signed by the Managing Director/CEO and evidence of settlement of these claims shall be submitted to the Commission on or before 21th of July 2026. 

“Please note that compliance with this directive is a critical regulatory criterion for eligibility, confirmation, and re licensing of all insurance/reinsurance companies after the conclusion of the ongoing recapitalization exercise. All insurance/reinsurance companies are required to ensure strict compliance with the content of this regulatory directive.”

By Obas Esiedesa, Abuja

The Federal Government (FG) incurred an electricity tariff subsidy obligation of N358.32 billion in the first quarter of 2026 as it continued to bridge the gap between cost-reflective electricity tariffs and the rates paid by consumers, according to the latest report by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

The Commission, in its First Quarter 2026 report released on Monday, said the subsidy represented a N60.46 billion, or 14.44 per cent, decline from the N418.79 billion recorded in the fourth quarter of 2025, largely due to lower electricity offtake by distribution companies (DisCos) rather than improvements in tariff recover.

NERC explained that in the absence of cost-reflective tariffs, the FG covers the difference between the actual cost of electricity generation and the approved tariffs through tariff subsidies.

Under the current Distribution Companies’ Remittance Obligation (DRO) framework, the subsidy is applied to the generation costs payable by DisCos to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc, while the government directly settles the outstanding portion with the Federal Ministry of Finance.

According to the report, electricity generation companies invoiced a total of N689.72 billion for energy supplied to the 11 DisCos during the quarter. However, only N331.40 billion was billed to the DisCos under the DRO arrangement, leaving the Federal Government to shoulder the remaining N358.32 billion.

NERC said the subsidy accounted for 51.95 per cent of the total generation invoice during the quarter, a marginal decline from 52.03 per cent recorded in the preceding quarter.

“The key driver of this reduction in FGN subsidy obligation is the decrease in energy offtake of the DisCos by 8.56 per cent between 2025/Q4 and 2026/Q1,” the Commission stated.  

The report also showed that electricity distribution companies collected N597.56 billion out of the N756.93 billion billed to customers during the quarter, translating to a collection efficiency of 78.95 per cent, down slightly from 79.36 per cent recorded in the fourth quarter of 2025.  

Among the DisCos, Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company recorded the highest collection efficiency at 90.0 per cent, followed by Eko (89.64 per cent), Benin (85.16 per cent), Port Harcourt (81.22 per cent) and Abuja (80.90 per cent). Kaduna DisCo posted the lowest collection efficiency at 45.81 per cent.

While Jos, Kaduna, Kano, Port Harcourt and Benin DisCos improved their collection efficiencies compared with the previous quarter, the remaining six DisCos recorded declines, with Enugu posting the sharpest drop.