Nigeria’s premier payment service company, UP otherwise known as Unified Payments has announced the appointment of Shehu Abubakar, to its board as an independent non-executive director.
Herbert Wigwe, chairman of the board of UP and group managing director and chief executive officer of Access Bank, who made the announcement disclosed that Abubakar is expected to provide valuable insight to the board and the management of UP for the growth of the company.
He further noted that the appointment of Mr. Abubakar as independent non-executive director is in line with global corporate governance best practices, and one of the measures geared towards positioning UP as the most preferred E-payments services provider in Africa.
According to a statement BusinessDay received, Abubakar comes with over 30 years of experience in the banking industry during which time he held strategic positions in different Banks. He began his career in Co-operative & Commerce Bank Plc where he served as an intern under the National Youth Service Corps scheme and worked at different times in International Merchant Bank, FSB International Bank, Fidelity Bank and Keystone Bank where he retired as an Executive Director. His banking experience covers areas such as corporate banking, public sector, corporate finance, leasing and treasury. His board experience includes being Director of a number of companies including Global Bank of Liberia, KBL Health Insurance and Cement Company of Northern Nigeria.
In the course of his career, Abubakar has attended many courses within and outside Nigeria including the Lagos Business School, Harvard Business School, Columbia Business School and Wharton Business School among others and has a wide range of experience in Strategy, Leadership & Executive Management, Customer Relations and Management and Corporate Finance among others.
UP is Nigeria’s premier Payments & Financial Technology Company founded in 1997 by a consortium of leading Nigerian banks. The company operates as a shared infrastructure for the banking community in Nigeria and Payments Service Provider within and outside Nigeria, with a vision to be the most preferred e-payment service provider in Africa.
In demonstration of its cross-enterprise alliances and capabilities, UP is the first and only non-bank entity in Nigeria that is Principal Member or Licensed Acquirer of all of American Express, Mastercard, PayAttitude, UnionPay, and Visa.
UP’s major businesses include Processing; Acquiring; Payment Terminal Service Provider (PTSP); switching; and Value-Added Services; Fintech and bespoke Solutions; (vii) Agency Network;
Since inception, UP has contributed significantly to the growth of electronic payment in Nigeria.
