United Bank for Africa Plc has reaffirmed its commitment to strengthening diaspora engagement and advancing healthcare development in Nigeria with the introduction of a new healthcare investment proposition targeted at the Nigerian-American medical community.
The bank unveiled the initiative at the 2026 ANPA Carolinas Symposium held in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The annual symposium, organised by the South Carolina and North Carolina Chapters of the Association of Nigerian Physicians in the Americas (ANPA), brings together more than 170 physicians and healthcare professionals for medical and scientific discussions on issues affecting communities across North America, the Caribbean, and Africa, especially among people of Nigerian descent.
Speaking during the event, UBA’s Head of Diaspora Banking, Anant Rao, urged Nigerian healthcare professionals abroad to deepen their involvement in Nigeria’s healthcare sector beyond remittances by investing in long-term institutional development.
According to Rao, the financial infrastructure required to connect diaspora success with sustainable healthcare investment in Nigeria had not been intentionally designed until now.
During his presentation, Rao introduced the ANPA–UBA Diaspora Healthcare Investment Platform, a professionally managed investment vehicle aimed at channeling diaspora funds into specialist hospitals, diagnostic centres, telemedicine infrastructure, and medical training institutions across Nigeria.
He explained that the initiative is structured to deliver both financial returns for investors and long-term impact on Nigeria’s healthcare system.
Rao noted that the framework is backed by the necessary regulatory support, banking infrastructure, governance systems, and institutional commitment required to drive sustainable healthcare investment.
Under the proposed arrangement, UBA will act as custodian and structuring bank, while United Capital Asset Management will serve as fund manager.
United Capital Asset Management currently manages more than N1.2 trillion in assets, making it one of Nigeria’s leading asset management firms.
As part of efforts to deepen engagement with the Nigerian-American medical community, Rao also proposed a Memorandum of Understanding between UBA and the two ANPA chapters.
The proposed collaboration is built around six strategic pillars, including preferred banking services for ANPA members, quarterly financial education sessions, the joint Healthcare Infrastructure Fund, a dedicated ANPA Wealth and Legacy Desk, group-rate family healthcare plans through Avon HMO, and a co-matching contribution framework to support qualifying impact projects under the Pearl Endowment Fund.
The initiative further expands UBA’s diaspora banking offerings, which already include Non-Resident Nigerian accounts in multiple currencies, fixed-income and dollar-denominated investment solutions through United Capital, elder-care trust solutions under the Homeland Anchor Care Trust programme in partnership with Avon HMO, and private wealth management services designed for diaspora professionals.
The bank said the 2026 ANPA Carolinas Symposium represents another milestone in its strategic engagement with Nigerians in the diaspora and reinforces its belief that diaspora capital can play a major role in accelerating healthcare and infrastructure development across Africa.
