The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has awarded a $150 million trade credit facility to United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc.
The facility is a component of Afreximbank’s Ukraine Crisis Adjustment Trade Financing Programme for Africa (AKAFPA), and both institutions signed a trade finance agreement this past weekend in Cairo on the fringes of Afreximbank’s ongoing Intra-African Trade Fair.
According to the agreement’s provisions, the facility will be used to support UBA’s clients by financing trade and trade-related transactions. Furthermore, by supporting expanded financing of trade enterprises across multiple Nigerian economic sectors, the facility will help lessen the negative consequences of the Russia-Ukraine situation.
Afreximbank Executive Vice-President Denys Denya stated at the signing ceremony, “The funding is driven by an increased demand for trade finance support to UBA’s clients which will enhance confidence in the settlement of international trade transactions for strategic imports. This is essential to Afreximbank’s mission to assist SMEs, especially those in the manufacturing sector, so they can boost output and bolster Nigeria’s economic growth and development.
“This facility will further boost our quest to deepen intra-African trade, which has been severely constrained by the impact of the war in Ukraine," stated Oliver Alawuba, Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of UBA.
“We are thrilled to have a long-standing, mutually beneficial relationship with Afreximbank,
as we both strive for better dealings for our customers.”
