Domestic Animal Abuse Essay

Domestic animal abuse is a difficult topic to separate from the agendas of those who would prevent it. The reports are certainly horrible enough on their own: a husband and wife are arrested for shipping 182 animals—mostly collies–in a tractor-trailer truck, a house is found filled with filthy, dying cats, dogs, and birds; hundreds of dogs die annually from being left unattended in the cars during the summer heat. Of course, animals do not need to die en masse for abuse to take place. Every day, family pets are forced to suffer abuse that would be otherwise aimed at human family members, they are tied outside without food and water, or they are simply ignored to death. Combating animal abuse can be difficult, however. In addition to the agendas shaping any efforts against it, no single legal definition exists for what constitutes domestic animal abuse. Because of this lack of a single definition, there can be no single form of prosecution. Yet, the significance of animal abuse goes far beyond that of the obvious cruelty to animals. It can be used as a predictor for people who develop sociopathy and has been connected with the occurrence of domestic abuse in the home. This paper will be used to discuss some of the difficulties that are associated with defining and legislating domestic animal abuse. It will also offer some discussion of the effects of this pervasive problem. Defining Domestic Animal Abuse Despite all of the annual occurrences of domestic animal abuse, there is no single definition for what constitutes such abuse. Animal rights extremist organizations, such as the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PeTA), the Humane Society for the United States (HSUS), and the Doris Day Animal League (DDAL) all believe that any use of animals constitute animal abuse. Ultimately, according to these organizations, any â€Å"use† of domestic animals constitutes abuse; even merely keeping a pet in one’s home is an abusive act. Using this reason any animal husbandry, from raising chickens for eggs, to keeping cows for milk, or any participation in the meat or fur industry constitutes abuse. Medical science represents the worst of these abuses, since it â€Å"takes away the rights† of an animal by sacrificing its health or life in favor of preserving human health or lives (Goodwin and Morrison). Legal definitions of domestic animal abuse, or animal cruelty, are much broader than this very narrow stance. Many state laws define animals as being â€Å"vertebrate animals† that are not human beings, although some states also include birds such as parrots or sparrows, as well. Other states do not refer to what defines an animal at all. In addition, some states do not permit fish or shellfish to be included in the discussion. If the laws concerning the definition of â€Å"animal,† â€Å"pet† or â€Å"companion animal† are so variable, then it should come as no surprise that laws defining abuse itself are varied, as well. However, it is common to break cruelty to animals down into two broad categories: passive (acts of omission) and active (acts of commission). Although there are no clearly defined categories for these acts or inactions, there are certain â€Å"patterns of behavior† that occur under the overall umbrella of â€Å"animal cruelty† or abuse (â€Å"Animal Cruelty,† n. d. , par. 1). Passive acts of cruelty are sometimes called â€Å"animal neglect. † These kinds of cruelty usually involve withholding something from the animal, such as food or water. In addition, passive acts might include failure to act if a pet becomes infested with any kind of parasite or if a collar becomes embedded into a pet’s skin due to the growth of the pet (Pet-Abuse. com pars. 4-5). In general, neglect is treated as a minor offense if only one animal, or a small number of animals, is involved. The severity of the crime increases, however, with and increasingly large number of animals involved. Neglect cases may also be divided between unintentional neglect, caused by ignorance, and intentional or â€Å"willful† neglect, caused by knowingly mistreating an animal (Lockwood, 2006, p. 19). Active acts of cruelty include violence against animals, often referred to as â€Å"torture,† â€Å"malicious intent,† or â€Å"non-accidental injury† (â€Å"Animal Cruelty,† n. d. , par. 6). Such abuse is of greater concern than is passive animal abuse. Some forms of violent active animal abuse is associated with other crimes, such as domestic abuse or child abuse. These abuses can also be used as a predictor of other crimes. Both of these observations will be expanded upon in a later section of this paper. Animal hoarding, organized â€Å"sporting† abuse, ritualistic abuse, and the use of animals for sexual gratification are all forms of active animal abuse (Lockwood, 2006, pp. 20-23). All of these forms of animal abuse are serious issues, causing both concern and expense for the community as a whole. Even animal hording, which is sometimes caricatured in movies–perhaps with an elderly female character with a house full of skinny, yowling cats–should be a matter of concern for society. Due to the hidden concerns of this form of abuse somewhat more discussion will be given to this form of abuse than the other three mentioned. Animal hoarding is a familiar to many of us; however, it is not always recognized for the problem that it is. It seems to be increasingly common to hear about a raid on a home that contains dozens, if not hundreds, of malnourished and half-wild animals, even if it is only reported as a â€Å"human interest† story or in the late-night television comedian’s monologue. However, according to Patronek, Loar, and Nathanson (2006) animal hoarding: is an important, misunderstood, and under-recognized community problem that affects both human and animal welfare. It is responsible for substantial animal suffering and property damage. Often associated with adult self-neglect, animal hoarding can also place children, elders, and dependent adults at serious risk and can be an economic burden to taxpayers. (p. 1) Although not always recognized as a problem, animal hoarding is relatively easy to identify. It is characterized by four factors: 1) the lack of the minimum physical care needed by the animals, 2) the abuser’s inability to recognize the abuse, 3) the obsession to continue collecting animals even when the number of animals housed exceed the ability to provide ideal living conditions, and 4) the abuser’s denial that the declining conditions exist (Patronek, Loar, & Nathanson, 2006, p. 1). Despite these common factors, however, animal hoarding is not a simple problem to contain. Several different kinds of animal hoarding exist, from the fairly benign â€Å"overwhelmed caregiver† to the person who acquires animals only to exploit them. Because of the variability of situations in which a person might begin hoarding animals, these classifications are fluid and characteristics might overlap. Sporting abuse is, fortunately, not as widespread as it was even 100 years ago. However, although most people think automatically of dog fighting and chicken fighting when animal â€Å"blood sports† are mentioned, others also exist. Despite their cultural acceptance, blood sports such as bullfighting in Spain and pit sports, such as fighting dogs and wild hogs in the Southeastern United States, might still be considered animal abuse. Ritualistic abuse is considered above and beyond the ability to sacrifice animals in the practice of a religion. While religious animal sacrifice is not included in most animal abuse statutes, it is often carefully defined and controlled by the law. Other forms of ritual animal killing is considered abuse and may be an indication that person committing the act has other serious psychological issues at work. This kind of abuse is incites communities to an emotional furor, due to the association that it has with allegedly satanic rituals and other â€Å"hot button† issues. For this reason, this kind of abuse is particularly disruptive to the community. Finally, some people find sexual gratification in congress with animal â€Å"partners,† known as â€Å"bestiality. † In truth, there is no â€Å"partnership† between the human abuser and the animal being abused in such a manner. Animals cannot voluntarily decide to take a human being as a mate or not. Therefore, they must be forced to act against their instinctive drives in order to comply with their human â€Å"partner’s† desires. This act of force is a violation of animal abuse laws in many nations (Lockwood, 2006). However, it should be noted that stimulation of an animal to collect sperm for frozen or cold storage for the purposes of artificial insemination is not considered bestiality. Other Laws Concerning Animal Abuse Not all nations agree on what constitutes animal abuse. While tail docking and ear cropping is currently legal in the United States, it is considered a form of animal mutilation in the United Kingdom. The Animal Welfare Act, signed by Elizabeth II in 2006, extends animal abuse laws to include invertebrates and gives municipalities to include animals in their â€Å"foetal or embryonic form,† should they choose to do so (p. 1). However, they may only do so as long as â€Å"the appropriate national authority is satisfied, on the basis of scientific evidence, that animals of the kind concerned are capable of experiencing pain or suffering† (Animal Welfare Act, 2006, p. 1). This act also clearly defines the terms â€Å"protected animals† and â€Å"unnecessary suffering† for the purposes of the law, as well as the manner by which individuals can be held responsible for that suffering (Animal Welfare Act, 2006, p. 2). It is interesting to note that only domestic animals are defined as â€Å"protected† animals; no matter what the behavior perpetrated upon them, wild animals, by definition, cannot be abused. Germany, like the rest of the European Union, attaches a moral stance to the protection of animals through their laws. This stance is in contrast to that of the United States, which protect animals in terms of property laws. Although the European perspective may appear to be superior to some, both positions have some advantages. Moral stances are not always objective ones; however, objective stances sometimes reduce decisions to a quantifiable decision-making process, which does not always allow for human needs and opinions to enter into the equation. In addition to laws concerning the abuse and husbandry of all domestic animals, the German law also defines limits for those individuals who wish to breed domestic animals. However, with all of these limitations, The German law does not specifically cover the hoarding of animals. The Significance of Animal Abuse Animal abuse is not only significant because it brings harm to sentient beings that humans should have an obligation to protect, it is also significant because of its relationship to other problems that plague society. These issues are not limited to any one race, ethnic group, religion, age, or income level. According to Lockwood (2006) juveniles perpetrate approximately one third of all animal abuse crimes (p. 33). In such cases, animal abuse might be indicative of abuse being perpetrated within the home, either against the juvenile or another family member, or it may indicate mental disease on the part of the juvenile him or herself (Lockwood, 2006). Lockwood identifies 15 major factors in determining the danger that the animal abuser presents to society. This list includes the vulnerability and the number of the animal victims, the severity and the repetition or number of forms of abuse on the victim(s), any threats that the animal abuse might have been meant to reinforce, and the manner of recording, if any, of the abuse (p. 35). Research reported in the Juvenile Justice Bulletin (JJB) (2001) indicates a link between conduct disorder in children and animal abuse. â€Å"Conduct disorder† as defined by the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSMIV) is â€Å"a repetitive and persistent pattern of behavior in which the basic rights of others or major age-appropriate societal norms or rules are violated† (par. 1). In addition, the child must conform to at least three of 15 other indicators for the disorder. One of these 15 indicators is animal abuse, which may range in intensity from mild teasing to torture and killing beginning at the age of approximately 6. 5 years of age (Juvenile Justice Bulletin, 2001, par. 2). Children with Operational Defiant Disorder (ODD) or Conduct Disorder (CD) often go on to become serious offenders as adults. Children with CD often go on to be described as sociopaths later in life, as well. According to the JJB, the differences between children who abuse animals and non-abusive children are significantly different when tracked for adult arrests for violent crimes, property crimes, drug offenses, and public order offenses. The JBB concludes that â€Å"these results make it clear that animal abusers are not only dangerous to their animal victims but also may jeopardize human welfare† (par. 7). This research is backed up by â€Å"Understanding the Links,† a pamphlet put out by the British National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, which states that: If a child is cruel to animals this may be an indicator that serious neglect and abuse have been inflicted on the child. While recent research in the UK suggests that animal abuse by children is quite widespread, in a minority of more extreme cases it appears to be associated with abuse of the child, or subsequent abusive behavior by the child. (Understanding the Links, n. d. p. 5). In addition to the issue of conduct disorder, there is a definitive link between animal abuse and other forms of domestic abuse. Animal abuse is at times part of the â€Å"constellation of family violence,† although by no means is it definite that an adult who harms animals will also harm their domestic partners or their children (p. 5). Although this observation is indeed true, it is also true that animal abuse is sometimes used as a form of coercion in abusive relationships. Regardless, it appears that: o Serious animal abuse in a household may indicate the occurrence of other domestic violence o Animal abuse might be done for coercion and intimidation of family members to keep them from leaving or speaking about an abusive domestic situation. o Sexualized or aggressive behavior toward animals on the part of a child may indicate the possibility of later animal abuse when that child matures (Understanding the Links, n. d. , p. 5). Conclusion Animal abuse is a difficult crime to describe and to define. Many different forms of abuse occur under the single umbrella term. Abuse can be passive or active. Passive abuse takes place when people withhold care from animals and can range from simple ignorant (and therefore correctible) acts to malicious neglect. Active abuse, however, does not typically occur out of ignorance. Due to its effects on the human psyche, particularly in terms of young children, animal abuse is not a stand-alone issue. When domestic violence is found in a home, animal abuse is often found as well. When animal abuse occurs, it may also indicate other, serious problems in

Psychological disorders and physical illness Essay

Irrational fear of common things leads to their inability to cope with life because the things that they fear have to be faced everyday. The most common disorders include phobias, In the medical field, many factors are attributed to the various conditions that people experience. Although genetic and biological factors which constitute of the natural causes and the life experiences which are the nurture factors contribute to ones physical wellbeing, it is also possible that a majority of illnesses that people suffer from are brought about by psychological factors. Heart diseases, chronic headaches, insomnia, hypertension, ulcers, eating disorders among others are some of the diseases that can be caused by psychological factors (Stoudemire A. 1995). It has been established that when one’s stress levels are very high, it reduces the activity of the lymphocytes leading to an increased likelihood of illness (Sadock B J. , Kaplan H. I. & Sadock V. A. ). A person suffering from a psychological disorder will most likely have feelings of helplessness in any given situation causing them to suffer even from common illnesses more than others will. To aid the patients suffering from these disorders, one can only recommend relaxation techniques while providing anti-depressants to control their response to life’s normal occurrences. A person with a disorder tends to react in a more intense manner than other would in similar situations. This causes an imbalance in their bodily functions leading to their contracting illnesses that would have otherwise been avoided. It also affects their chances of getting better from any other illness that they may be suffering from. The disorders include anxiety, obsessive-compulsive disorders and panic (Ketterer M. W. , Mahr G`. & Goldberg A. D. ). These render a person powerless against their fears and in the process affect their wellbeing.

Prepping Your Sources Essay

Fill in the notes for the amendment and for each of the three categories (multi-media, contemporary cases, advocacy documents). If you need support for the citation, consult the MLA Formatting Guide you printed from the lesson. Amendment for your topic (from the Bill of Rights) Citation: http://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/fourth_amendment What information from this source seems the most important? Note key points mentioned in the source. The most important part of the amendment is the right to be secure from unwarranted search and seizures. How does this source support your topic? It shows how the government can bend the will of this amendment in their favor but it also shows how this amendment can severely help the defendants when they are truly guilty. What information from this source would be most useful to include in your informative/explanatory article? The general right of the people to be protected from unwarranted search and seizures in their own homes by police and other law enforcement. One Multi-Media Resource (videos, slideshows, audio files, infographics) Citation: http://www.slideshare.net/jenvogt/fourth-amendment-and-racial-profiling-1 Key Use: I used it to better understand the fourth amendment rights. What information from this source seems the most important? Note key points mentioned in the source. How privacy rights are superseded by reasonable suspicion. How does this source support your topic? It helps me have a better understanding on the rights of the fourth amendments and right better able it. What information from this source would be most useful to include in your informative/explanatory article? The fact that your privacy is superseded by reasonable suspicion. Two Contemporary Case Resources (articles on recent case) #1 Citation Information: http://www.law.cornell.edu/supct/pdf/13-132.pdf Key Use: Gives a whole overview of the Riley Vs. California case. What  information from this source seems the most important? Note key points mentioned in the source. The important information in this source is that a cop search Riley’s phone without a warranted and he was arrested on those charges. How does this source support your topic? It shows how unwarranted search and seizure leads to bad arrests and criminals get off the hook because of one mistake. What information from this source would be most useful to include in your informative/explanatory article? How the arrests happened and provide details about why and how the cop went about arresting riley. #2 Citation Information: https://www.eff.org/files/2014/06/20/patino_decision.pdf Key Use: Gives a full review of the case.  What information from this source seems the most important? Note key points mentioned in the source. How the evidence was once again taken from a cell phone. How does this source support your topic? It shows more examples of fourth amendment rights being violated. What information from this source would be most useful to include in your informative/explanatory article? How the search went, provide details, and references about the whole case. Two Advocacy Documents or Articles (document or article including statements from presidents, politicians, or advocates about the topic you selected) #1 Citation Information: http://billofrightsinstitute.org/resources/educator-resources/lessons-plans/landmark-cases-and-the-constitution/olmstead-v-united-states-1927/ Key Use: In the Olmstead case Chief Justice William Taft had said the amendment meant physically searches and seizures. What information from this source seems the most important? Note key points mentioned in the source. How Chief Justice William Taft had said the amendment meant physically searches and seizures. How does this source support your topic? It shows how the government still bends the amendment in their favor. What information from this source would be most useful to include in your informative/explanatory article?

Civil Litigation Course work Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3000 words

Civil Litigation Course work - Essay Example Scott was driving on. He rammed into Mr. Scott’s vehicle on the passenger’s side. According to the police reports, Mr. Marshall was not wearing a helmet as per the traffic regulations. Mr. Scott on the other hand though drunk, his status was not beyond the legal alcohol limit. However, he was charged and found guilty of a traffic offence as he was talking over the phone while driving contrary to section 3 of the Road Traffic Act. Mr. Marshall sued Mr. Scott for the injuries sustained. The aim of this report to is determine if Mr. Scott is liable to pay damages to Mr. Marshall and what possible defenses he could actually rely on to escape liability. 3 Issues and Law 3 The first issue that arises in this case is the need to determine whether Mr. Scott is guilty of careless driving under section 3 of the Road Traffic Act and if this would necessarily prejudice his civil liability. In this regard, the proceedings under Road Traffic Act do not prejudice his civil case. Accor ding to Keenan (2011, p. 53), the outcome of a criminal action does not affect the outcome of civil case. The next issue in this case is the issue of liability. The question is whether Mr. Scott was liable to pay any damages to Mr. Marshall for the injuries sustained. Sustaining injuries in an accident does not give one an automatic right to recover damages. The question to be determined is which party was liable for the accident. One party may be fully liable or both parties might be liable meaning that each party is partially liable. The person claiming damages for personal injury after a motor vehicle accident has to prove that the other party was negligent. This means that Mr. Marshall has to prove beyond reasonable doubt that whatever damage that resulted from the accident was wholly or partially the fault of Mr. Scott. 4 In this case, one of the initial things to be determined is whether Scott was negligent. Under the law of torts, Howarth (2006, p. 147) indicates that a perso n is negligent when he or she is in breach of the legal duty of care that brings damage to the claimant. Negligence as per Alderson B in the case of Blyth v Birmingham Water Works constitutes omission by a reasonable person who guided by ordinary consideration fails to do something and as a result causes injury to another person. The same principle of the tort of negligence applies to the motor vehicle accident. Liability in this respect is determined on the basis of the negligent party. Under the law of torts, there are three requirements that need to be fulfilled. The first requirement that needs to be fulfilled for a claim to succeed is that the party claiming negligence needs to establish a duty of care (Smith, 1983, p. 44). 4 In light of the case, Marshall needs to establish that Scott owed him a duty of care. As a general rule, any one driving on a public road has a duty to the public and where one chooses to drive, they should be able to control the motor vehicle so that it d oes not harm other people. In the instant case, Mr. Scott by virtue of driving on a public road had a duty to control it to ensure that any person on the same road was not hurt. Even if it was the fault of the other party Mr. Scott should have taken all the reasonable measure to control the happening of the accident. This is to his disadvantage. However the other party too being a public road user is burdened with the same duty of care to ensure that he controls the motor

SEE ATTACHMENT4L Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 250 words

SEE ATTACHMENT4L - Essay Example Finally, conflicts with a friend is best resolved using analytical skills to determine the root of the problem, and to eventually compromise, on the basis of the terms agreed upon. What are the barriers to win - win solutions? Win-win solutions mean that the terms and conditions are agreeable and amenable on both parties. The barrier to this type of solution therefore is finding a middle ground which would enable both parties to compromise on an agreement. How do you agree to disagree with someone? Agreeing to disagree with someone entails cognitive skills that would have enabled one to assess the source of conflict on issues being discussed. When the argument being asserted does not conform to one’s believes, values, and preferences, then; it is best to disagree with the contentions of the other party. Where they effective in resolution? Some of the avoidance tactics, such as deferring the discussion of the issue to future dates is effective, only in terms of preventing exacerbating the conflicting situation. When anger or emotional intensity have subsided, then, both parties could try to resolve the issue using other conflict resolution strategies, such as problem-solving, or compromising, as

Information systems in construction ''Proliance'' Term Paper

Information systems in construction ''Proliance'' - Term Paper Example In the modern era of complex infrastructure development, organizations are required to be competitive, innovative and efficient in order to remain profitable and ensure sustainability. Success in infrastructure management is government by the extent of flexibility and dynamism that the organization can demonstrate. Such organizations strive constantly towards growth and develop strategies that facilitate both horizontal and vertical expansion. A typical construction company owns thousands of assets ranging from many kinds of equipment and operational facilities to steel and cable installations. All these assets operate in a highly networked environment as part of numerous workflows through several interconnections. In this complex and highly evolving scenario, managing something so large and complex is fairly difficult even for a large team of skilled engineers and construction managers. The concept of Infrastructure Lifecycle Management (ILM) deals with this issue and is an integral component of any modern construction strategy (Gupta, 2009). Numerous software companies have developed relevant information systems to provide a system-driven management of construction projects and to facilitate some automation and optimization in some of the inherent tasks. ‘Proliance’ is one such software platform from Meridian Systems that is used for the purpose of Infrastructure Lifecycle Management (ILM). Proliance allows firms to optimize and manage project lifecycles using the popular ‘Plan-Build-Operate’ methodology (Karlsson, 2008). As such, Proliance can be used in any capital and infrastructure-driven projects including construction and real estate. The Proliance suite is useful for construction projects during all phases ranging from preliminary design, construction and operational management. All along, the system helps monitor expenses, ensures control through a number of rules and constraints and consists of mechanisms to ensure the optim ization of the infrastructure both from the inside and outside perspectives. Thus, the system is useful for a holistic management of construction projects and surpasses traditional limitations of specific capabilities (Amekudzi, 2007). For example, Proliance can manage the utilization of any related resources like equipment and wiring. The system can be operated from a centralized platform and is capable of handling all aspects of ILM. This paper discusses the numerous features of the Proliance system and their applicability to the construction industry within the context of ILM. Besides highlighting the strategic value that Proliance is capable of adding to infrastructure projects, this paper also describes the numerous ways in which the management and use of assets can be optimized through this

An analytical paper of the short story summer by Edith Wharton Essay

An analytical paper of the short story summer by Edith Wharton - Essay Example Then she remembered his sudden pause when he had come close to the desk and had his first look at her. The sight had made him forget what he was going to say; she recalled the change in his face, and jumping up she ran over the bare boards to her washstand, found the matches, lit a candle, and lifted it to the square of looking-glass on the white-washed wall. Her small face, usually so darkly pale, glowed like a rose in the faint orb of light, and under her rumpled hair her eyes seemed deeper and larger than by day. Perhaps after all it was a mistake to wish they were blue. A clumsy band and button fastened her unbleached night-gown about the throat. She undid it, freed her thin shoulders, and saw herself a bride in low-necked satin, walking down an aisle with Lucius Harney. He would kiss her as they left the church....She put down the candle and covered her face with her hands as if to imprison the kiss.† (Edith Wharton, Summer, Ch.III) The vocabulary used in the above passage is powerfully suggestive. It explores the two central themes of the novel – ‘different social classes’ and ‘sexual awakening’. "Its no use trying to be anything in this place," – this line only echoes the sexual repression of her times. The arrival of Lucius Harney had evoked in her, a sense of being ‘the other’. She now, more than ever, began to feel the burden of her improper lineage. It aroused in her – both, a sense of shame and a sense of envy. Despite her lower social ranking, she increasingly seems to become aware of her growing desires. This passage traces the beginning of Charity’s awakening to a new sense of self. The simile, â€Å"glowed like a rose† is provocative in implication. She experiences a growing passion when she â€Å"freed her thin shoulders†. The imagery used in these lines boldly shows how liberating and satisfying awareness of sexuality can be. This physical awakening heralds her

Finance Dissertation Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2000 words

Finance - Dissertation Example Islamic banking and finance is the new representation of financial institutions and it is also said to be the answer in looking for a better and fairer way of managing money and in underpinning the real financing activities. Since its origin, just over thirty years ago Islamic banking has been the fastest growing industry in the financial system and financial markets of several countries. It has â€Å"concentrated in the Middle East and Southeast Asia, but they are also present as niche players in Europe and the United States† (Cihak & Hesse, 2008, p.3). For instance, Islamic banking in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is more lucrative compared to conventional or commercial banks of the country (Parker, 2010). Aside from profitability, Islamic banks also are strong in asset growth despite of the abrupt decline of credit ratio compared to the average banking sectors in many countries. However, when global financial crisis had entered the real economy, Islamic banks started to incur more and more lucrative losses than their conventional counterparts, because Islamic investments are more prone to risk. The aim of this paper is to investigate the financial stability of Islamic banks versus conventional banks in the perspective of the global credit crunch. ... The growing literature mostly contained issues of comparison between the role of Islamic and conventional banking in the global credit crunch. When it comes to empirical analysis of financial stability the argument would always be about risk whereas when it comes to empirical papers, most of the arguments are discussing the efficiency of handling risks (Cihak & Hesse, 2008, p.3). The severe deficiency of money or credit which is also known as credit crunch has created a big impact on banking operations and practices around the world. Global credit crunch is a higher form of risk that distinguishes the differences executed by Islamic banks from those executed by conventional banks. Several institutions in various countries are now offering Islamic financial services like Murababa, Ijara, and Musharaka, wherein Muslims and non-Muslims can lend money without interest and no trading debt (Ahmad, 2010, p.38). According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the success of Islamic banks is present in almost all Middle East countries except Bahrain, Qatar, and the UAE. Based on the study of Hassan and Bahshir (2005), Islamic banks are said to be efficient when it comes to resources allocation, profitability, liquidity, development of assets, and many more. However, according to Schoon (2009, p.187), Islamic banks are settled in a less efficient and cost effective market as long as the average rate of return is elevated. He said further that Islamic banks are not efficient in terms of liquidity ratios because of an absence of liquid assets and accepted primary liquidity instruments such as cash, bank balances, negotiable instruments, etc. It also

Analysis and Valuation of General Dynamics Essay

Analysis and Valuation of General Dynamics - Essay Example The total sales revenue was USD 30, 852. General Dynamics Corporation conducts business with worldwide government customers like governments of Australia, The United Kingdom, Switzerland, Spain, Mexico and Canada. There is a long term commitment to enhance customer relationships with regional suppliers and employers in the identified governments. The commercial business segment of the corporation entails export of business-jet aircrafts and global aircraft services. In recent years, there is significant expansion of business-jet aircraft services. Expansion of market segments is also seen in emerging markets (PRAHALAD, 2008). There is growing segment of aircraft business in the international markets. The international market segment grew by 60% in the year 2014. The company competes with both small and large companies which are specialized in capability or technology. Combat systems compete with a number of foreign and domestic companies. There is one primary competitor of Marine systems called Hurtington Ingallas Industries. The company was formerly known as Northrop Grumman Shipbuilding. The company subcontracts and partners in many programs such as SSN 774 Virginia Class Submarines. The company is involved in subcontracting and teaming relationship with the competitors. It team works, the company acts as an integrator who oversees efforts of all team members in the contract. The General Dynamics main competitors in defense market include Boeing, BAE Systems, Raytheon, Ingallas Industries, Northrop Grumman, and Lockheed Martin. The key competitors in the aircraft range include Gulfstream Competitors, Cessna, Dassault and Embraer (DAMODARAN, 2013). The main competitive factors in the aircraft market business include reliability of aircraft, performance, and aircraft safety, comfort of aircraft, in-flight productivity, timeliness, service quality, and offer of competitive prices. Aspects such as new product

Project Managing Marketing Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 3250 words

Project Managing Marketing - Essay Example In other areas, health reforms are being pushed by health organizations to encourage healthy living that advised people to avoid fats and to eat only healthy foods. As these issues are closely linked to the operations that would eventually affect profitability of the KFC, a change of marketing plan that definesits corporate responsibility to its stakeholders is needed. Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has been defined as â€Å"the concept that an organization has obligations not just to conduct its business and adhere to legal guidelines, but also to look out for the welfare of â€Å"†¦Ã¢â‚¬ ¦. the community, and society at large† (ecomii, N. d.). CSR is also viewed as a PR device to gain good favor from customers, and in some point refers to corporate ethics and good governance. As such, a new marketing plan is designed in order to improve the image of the KFC and increase its profitability. This will address the ethical problems in use of caged chicken and a chang e of direction that illustrates KFC markets and the strategies it is going to use to continue to attract customers and to create a solid revenue system for the company. In effect, this marketing plan is a strategy that determines exactly what the market wants – and coming up with a plan that will satisfy its wants. Organizational structure Kentucky Fried Chicken (KFC) is well known restaurant chains when it comes to chicken. The company’s headquarters are found at Kentucky (where it derived its name) in the U.S. As per company record, KFC has over eleven thousand restaurants located in over eighty countries of world. Some of the countries served outside U.S. are UK, China, Thailand, Kuwait, Spain and Barbados, Puerto Rico, Pakistan and many others. The major product of the company is chicken served in various forms such chunky chicken hot pie, chicken fillets, chicken sandwiches among others. KFC has a total of 300 sets of menus being served in its outlets. As part of YUM! brand that operates a global restaurant system, KFC teams up with other restaurants like Pizza Hut and Taco bell brands (About Us). 1.1. Vision The vision of the marketing plan is to provide customers the ultimate satisfaction of eating healthy foods and to provide choices that respond to their tastes and budget. KFC does this by giving customers options between organic and non-organic chickens in the menu that customers can easily order in many KFC restaurants found worldwide. Management will be committed to the success of the plan and is willing to spend for the necessary resources for its successful implementation; that the marketing plan is in the context of the organization’s overall business plan and that the people in the organization down to the supply chain will share a similar view to the marketing function. 1.3. Objectives The overall objectives of the marketing plan is to create a new corporate image that projects KFC as sustaining ethics in animal welfare as part of its corporate social responsibility to its stakeholder and ultimately increase its profitability Replying to the demands of PETA and other animal welfare pressure groups, the use of organic chicken is proposed along with the standard chicken menu used by KFC in its restaurants. Advantages in using organic chicken are: it is healthy, tastes better and safe to eat. An organic chicken, as opposed to caged chicken, is not fed

Research assignment Thesis Proposal Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 750 words

Research assignment - Thesis Proposal Example It is as if the country encourages technology diffusion within its boundaries, but its relations with other countries are tied to impeding technology. Iraq’s war with Iran is the prime example of impeding technology diffusion. The rate of acquiring technology accelerated in weapon and warfare tactics. According to reports almost $94 million worth of US computer technology was sold to Iraq during that war (Hurst 58). But sadly all other areas of the governance were ignored. The economy of both countries suffered severe blows due to war. Technology progress was pushed back. The only beneficiary of the war is weapon industry. Education system is probably one of the biggest losers in this bloody game. Well developed countries nurture their education system to produce brilliant generation. Such an output contributes to the society. Iraq had not had the peace and resources to invest technology into its school system. Now the country is slowly rising from the ashes. Maybe in a few years’ time the country will start producing excellent technology. The Shia-Sunni conflict in Iraq is an old problem. Iraq’s history is plagued with these conflicts since the sixteenth century. The Ottoman Empire (Sunnis) and Iran (Shiites) were frequently fighting over Iraqi territory during that time span. Technology does not have religion, and it does not have sects. It needs a peaceful environment to bloom. Conflicts like Shias and Sunnis in Iraq are a major cause of impeding technology in that region. Shias and Sunnis can contribute much towards technology by cooperating but sadly they are involved in a tussle of power. No technology company would want to invest in an area where there is uncertainty. Even the well renowned universities would hesitate in opening research centers in a place where there is anarchy and chaos. Iraq is one such place where tech companies feel hesitant in putting up their factories and research & development centers. In

Ethical dilemmas Essay Example for Free

Ethical dilemmas Essay Any field of study has its dilemmas and nursing is no exception. The dilemmas in question tend to take a higher dimension and involve the nurse educators as well. Their dilemmas range from ethical or legal to moral. Some of these dilemmas involve trying to meet the needs of the community around you. Trying to address environmental issues is another dilemma. Dealing with challenges form your students is also another dilemma, and many more (Foot, 2002,). A close tool at the whole topic shows that the educator in question may be faced with the dilemma of not having enough content for his students. This may make him feel threatened and frustrated, because he may end up teaching the wrong thing to the students who may end up endangering the lives of the patients, they will be handling, after college (Foot, 2002). If contents is not enough the educator may feel threatened by producing half-baked students. This should be well considered and ensure it does not happen. However it is normally common especially when the educator is still fresh with his work (Foot, 2002). The educator in question may also be faced with the dilemma of early preparations. This normally happens when he does not know how to prepare or when to prepare. In the process students end up not getting enough information form their educator (Scott, 1998). On the side of the communities needs is another problem, especially if the educator does not know them. Since the educator is someone with his or her professional then it is very obvious and possible not to understand the needs of the community better. This normally leads to a lot of misunderstanding and frustrations (Cohen, 2003). The dilemmas in question also tend to be challenges, especially form students. This is true, especially when the students come for advice. The nurse educator will normally not know what to tell his students when he himself has no enough knowledge of their needs. It is a serious issue as some students ignore the departments of guiding and counselling and prefer to seek the advice of their educators. Unless the higher authorities know better how to address this issue there will always be a problem (Cohen, 1998). Other challenges that face the most nurse educators are class preparations, how to keep in touch with the current affairs, cases of students lying or cheating in exams, dealing with death cases, and also wanting to be a role model (Rodin, Collins, 1991). As for class preparations, this is true when the nurse educator tries to prepare enough or adequately for the classes. It is more serious if the educator is involved with students who normally ask very hard questions. This can always make the educator feel inadequate, and that does not know how to prepare for classes better, it normally becomes another problem (Denhardt, 1988). Keeping in touch with the current affairs is important and enjoyable when the nurse educator tries to keep in touch with the current affairs; there is always the problem of maintaining himself in his profession. This is a very big dilemma; unless the higher authorities address it properly then it is still a major problem for the nurse educator (Cohen, 2003). Another problem is that of trying to be a role model to his students. This is also a big dilemma since it involves knowing at first hand how to go about it. The educator should be provided with enough information about it. This is to say they should be taught early enough in colleges or universities (Scott, 1998). The higher authorities must change their attitude from the non- supportive one to a more positive and responsive one. The ethical dilemma faced by the nurse educators are worrying especially this one of catching a student cheating in the examination. This should always be handled very sensitively. Unless the higher authorities understand the educator’s needs then misunderstandings will always come in even in such a case (Denhardt, 1988). The governments should think hard on how to address these dilemmas. They are serious ones, and should not be allowed to happen in any way. Once they are properly handled this will promote and give morale to the educators in question and also improve the stands of living of people (Rodin, Collins, 1991).

Motives of Bank Mergers and Acquisition

Motives of Bank Mergers and Acquisition Chapter One 1.0 Introduction Over the years, the world have witnessed growth and development in the business world and will still record a lot more due to rapid technological growth in recent times. Merger and Acquisitions (MA) has contributed immensely to the worldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s economic development and also helped indirectly to create stability in some industries in both developing and developed nations. A merger is usually the amalgamation of two or more companies running commercial activities. On the other hand, acquisition is where one company takes over another and the identity of the other company can be eradicated as it becomes part of a larger company. Most MAs between companies have occurred as a result of achieving economies of scale and penetrate into new markets. Many bank employees regard MA as a threat to their jobs as the period will record shareholders demand for reduction of workforce. It will also be problematic to execute Human resource management with, and the environment of MA due to t he changes that will be recorded in the procedures and practices in the new company. The vast majority of mergers acquisitions research is correctional and focuses on publicly traded corporate entities, using quantitative secondary data made available by large number of databases (Meglio and Risberg, 2010). Background to the Study A significant change has been witnessed in the Nigerian banking sector over the years, in respect to ownership structure, number of institutions and locations, as well as the profundity of operations. There are some numbers of effects when companies merge or when one company acquires another company (Cigola and Modesti, 2008). This include reduced expense in production and management cost, deriving It was observed that downsizing, mergers, and acquisitions are examples of the radical organizational responses to increase global completion, improvements in technology, and government deregulation (Shook and Roth, 2010). The changes so far recorded have been predisposed mostly by the challenges posed by issues as globalization, deregulation of the financial sector, and the implementation of a decision making and prudential requirements that are in line with international standards. This is why some companies may deliberately choose to merge with any other readily available in its line of business. The benefits in most cases are much more than the losses if any is recorded. Mergers have also had effects on employees as the process usually leads to an upward or downward review of wages and salaries. There are also cases where the MA leads to downsizing of workforce as new technological operation techniques will be adopted and there will be less needed for human resource compared to the former way of operation. Bank Mergers and Acquisition A significant amount of research has been done to ascertain the success rate of MAs in banks to be able to draw conclusion on its profitability and efficiency (Behr and Heid, 2011). It was pointed out that despite the considerable prospective U.S banking mergers in the 1980s; many of them were not successful in achieving their aim due to the cost of efficiency. Banks have diverse reasons why they merge which relates to the business motives behind it such as managerial incentives (Wood, 2006). The banking industry was partly strengthened through MA as they use the merged assets to build a strong capital base for the bank and more assets that have appreciated value. Soludo (2004) enumerated the fundamental problems of the banks, particularly those classified as unsound, have been identified to include; persistent illiquidity, poor assets quality and unprofitable operations and further mentioned that their major problems also included weak governance , weak capital base, late publicatio ns of annual reports, gross insider abuses and over dependence on public sector deposits. Many literatures indicates that banking sector reforms in Nigeria propelled by the need to deepen the financial sector and reposition for growth, to become integrated into the global financial design; and involve a banking sector that is consulting with regional integration requirement and international best practices (Somoye, 2010). Nigerian Banking Industry In the recent past, Nigerian banks have adopted poles apart strategies to achieve a predetermined least amount capital base during the banking sector consolidation in the year 2004 and 2005 which was put at twenty five billion Naira (Alao, 2010). This process saw a lot of banks in Nigeria to source for funds from all forms of businesses to meet up the demand and at a point, it was observed mergers or acquisition of smaller banks was the only way out of the regulation. MAs is a global phenomenon with an estimated four thousand deals taking place each year. Elumilade (2010) mentioned that banks are the linchpin of the economy of any country. He mentioned that banks in any every country play a vital position in respect to the countryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s financial system and they could be regarded as vital agents for development process. Banks also are relevant through financial intermediation services and promote economic growth (Afolabi, 2004). According to Ibru (2006), there was an embryonic phase of the Nigerian banking industry which began with the first set of banks started with the African banking corporation which had its headquarter in south Africa and was pioneering by the Nigerian banking system in 1892. In 1894 the British bank for West Africa which now known as the first bank while union bank of Nigeria plc formerly known as the Barclays D.C.O started in 1925. The British and French bank now united bank for Africa was established in 1949. Many other indigenous banks were established and they ushered in the era that saw the constant monopoly erstwhile enjoyed by the foreign owned banks (CBN, 2008) Central Bank of Nigeria and Market Recapitalization The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2004 introduced a policy that made it mandatory for recapitalization to be carried out in the banking industry. This was mentioned as the fourth phase of the banks restructuring scheme and all banks should comply strictly before the end of 2005 (Afolabi, 2004). This led the emergence of twenty five consolidated banks and the process encouraged mergers and acquisition in many cases. They were 89 members of the Nigerian banking industry (NBI) prior to the recapitalization. It was recorded that the CBN in 2009 provided two hundred billion Naira to four undercapitalized banks after an audit was carried out which reported that they could face liquidity problems and needed funds to continue normal operations. In addition, the CBN decided to stabilize the system and return confidence to the markets and investors, an addition injection of six hundred and twenty billion naira of liquidity into the banking sector and there is a replacement of leadership in eight banks which has given sector a little more balanced than its formal position (Sanusi, 2010). Relevance of the Research After the bank consolidation in 2005, it was mentioned in a CBN report that UBA Plc and First Bank of Nigeria have been effectively competing with multinationals in various aspects of international business. CBN Report (2007) also revealed that some Nigerian banks after the consolidation were able to register their presence in the developed countries like United States of America and United Kingdom as participate in foreign market areas of funds transfer and loans servicing. Mergers and acquisitions have for long attracted interest of many researchers in academics in trying to predict the outcomes of the deals (Meglio and Risberg, 2010). They further explained that the inconsistency in some research findings has necessitated the need for more integrative frameworks to grasp the complete phenomenon. Also, the researchersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ opinion aiming to explain mergers and acquisition outcomes in general have not been able to successfully develop and test a grand theory about MAs. Aim of the Study This research aims to look into the overall motives of banks mergers and acquisition as well as its impact on the Nigerian economy. Research Questions and Objectives Research Questions What are the implications of bank mergers and acquisition? What are the motives behind bank merger and acquisition? How does merger and acquisition impact on efficiency? How can merger and acquisition effect competition in the Nigerian banking sector? Research Objectives To critically evaluate mergers and acquisition in the banking sector To analyse the impact of merger and acquisition in the Nigerian banking sector To evaluate the success of UBA merger and acquisition To identify the success factors of UBA in Nigeria Banking sector Plan of the study The plan of this work has been structured to begin by providing a background of the area under discussion and justifying the need for the study in the first chapter. This would be immediate followed by review of literatures relating to similar issues and traditional views of mergers and acquisition in chapter two. The research method which will highlight how I intend to gather data will be presented in the third chapter. The data analysis and findings will be presented and discussed in chapters four which will be followed by the summary, conclusion and recommendation in chapter five. Summary This chapter gives an insight into the subject matter by examining the different related aspects of the subject that will contribute to the major focus of the other chapters. It is a known fact that MA has positive and negative impacts in any sector or environment where it has occurred and this will give us the opportunity to draw the impact of competition that will bring in the absence of a monopoly situation. Chapter Two Literature Review Recent studies show that the bank recapitalization process that took place in Nigeria in 2005 has been of great importance to the sector. Merger and acquisition across the world have had positive impact in the strength of the firm in most cases. The banking sector in Nigeria across the world has had course to experience MA in some cases and this helped them in restricting in various forms. The UBA merger with STB was a success as the experience of the first generation bank and agility of a new generation bank was put together to produce a stronger UBA Plc. History of Mergers and Acquisitions MA history time and again have surprises many people when they realise that the concept of MA are not new, and on the converse they are progressing from the early years. It helps us to understand the evolution of the concepts in the world. The economic watch (2011) mentioned that there are five major stages of MA which discussed as wave period. Each of these waves recorded its progress associated with it and has a technological support that gave rise to the era. Past experience has also shown that MA are triggered by economic factors. The period between (1897 1904) saw a lot of horizontal mergers as companies which enjoyed monopolistic competition over their area of production such as electricity and transcontinental railroads merging with others in same area. It mainly occurred between heavy manufacturing industries at that time. A lot of mergers failed towards the end of this phase as they could not get the desired efficiency and the state of world economy as at 1903 as well as th e stock market crash on 1904 did not help matters. Chu (2010) reflected to the mergers in Canadian banks in 1889 to 1926 which could be referred to as both the first and second wave period. He explained that economist has not fully explored the mechanisms through which financial developments affects economic growths. Canadaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s growth trough MA under the period was under study was also associated with higher banking concentration and a wider branch network. Kling (2006) also agreed that the German universal system emerged around 1914 as the big banks in Berlin acquired smaller banks. This development supported industrial enterprise and external growth through industrial enterprise. The second wave or MA was recorded between 1916 and 1929 which were more between oligopolies as that of monopolies in the first era. The post world war economic boom after the First World War supported these mergers. Also, government policies as at that time started to encouraged companies to work together and technological innovation in areas of transportation provided the needed for such MA. Most of the mergers at this time were mainly horizontal or conglomerate in nature. Producers of key metals, petroleum products, food products, chemicals and transport equipments were mainly involved in the mergers of this period. Investment also supported very in merger as at the period but the great depression of 1929 and the stock market crash in same year brought period to an end. There were mainly conglomerate mergers as at 1965 to 1969 which was stimulated by sky-scraping stock prices, interest rates, and stringent enforcement of antitrust law in the third wave merger. This period did not end well as government were becoming too harsh towards them end of the period but a few companies did well in the 1970s. The fourth merger wave was within 1981 to 1989 recorded mergers in some industries such as airline, banking, oil and gas and pharmaceutical. There many cases of foreign takeovers and the period ended with anti takeover laws, reforms in financial institution and the gulf war. Kim and white (1998) analyzed almost all commercial banks mergers in the united states between 1985 and 1991, and found out evidence of decreasing cost efficiencies in most mergers, except for mergers between very large financial institutions. The small and medium commercial banks decreased efficiencies after merger. Globalization, stock market boom and deregulation in the telecommunication, banking and petroleum industries were major characteristics of the fifth merger. Most of the mergers at this time were geared towards profit maximization but the burst of the stock bubble also ended this era. Huyghebaert and Luypaert (2009) states that in the year 2007 alone, there almost forty thousand deals announced in respect mergers and acquisitions across the world. This accounted for an aggregate value deal value of one thousand, three hundred and forty-five billion dollars. Ernst and Young (1995) also identified the alternatives of acquisition: financial, geographic, and symbiotic and absorption acquisitions. In the case of financial is where a company is bought into a holding company for the purpose of restructuring. The main objectives for the acquisition are mainly to eradication, reduce cost and improved efficiency. There are so many firms with ideas to change the world of business but lack the financial muscle to improve in research and development and or invest more into the existing findings. Any business speculator that gets hold of this will ensure that these ideas see the light of the day by an outright acquisition so as to finance the company for growth. Geographic acquisitions are intended to expand the acquirerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s core business across new frontiers. The term emerging markets rings a bell in business as every investor want to sell products and services where there is a ready market with a thriving huge population. In the rece nt years, most businesses have moved their production sites to Asia where there cheap labour and n emerging market for the product. Some parts of Africa where there reasonable levels of stability have also seen to be good to expand into as a new frontier. The sales of mobile phone handsets the Nigerian market could be seen as a good example a new frontier for Chinese or Japanese phone manufacturers. Companies merge with others in a different location just to get access to the new location as well. Symbolic acquisitions are described as where newly acquired products and competencies are absorbed into the parents business but the acquired company retains a level of independence, absorption acquisition imply that the two businesses are fully integrated, with one effectively loosing identity. This is an effective business strategy as the name of the former company is like an asset and most customers may not continue with the product or services if the name is changed. The case of Tata acquiring land rover in 2009 is a suitable case where the name Tata is known for production of trucks and military vehicles, but land rover is known for luxury cars and as such the change of the name perceived with strength should remain to keep the market moving smooth. The case of absorption acquisition as mentioned before where one companies gradually losses identity could be seen in the case if Safeway supermarket and Morrisonà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s supermarket where Safeway gradually faded away. Chen and Tan (2011) examined how the deregulation of financial services industry has intensified in some European countries a significant portion of business handled by banks. This is because the deregulated banks have more financial capacity to manage and finance businesses with a confidence of measuring up at the end of the day. There were two hundred and thirteen mergers during 1989 to 2004 with the acquirer of a European bank and the target of an insurance company. This was because the growth and success rate of mergers was lucidly clear to business world at time, in that firms were on the lookout for a similar thriving company that they could merge resource and ideas together to achieve economies of scale and reduced overhead cost. Koetter (2007) was of the view that prior to the merger targets perform poorly compared to acquirers in many merger cases. The increasing efficiency of a firm reduces the hazards of takeovers but increases the risk if bank failures. Therefore, the probability of takeovers and failures is influence significantly by efficiency. Imala (2005) identified eight reasons for merger and acquisitions in the financial service sector. The identified reason are in relation cost savings attributed to economies of scale as well as more efficient allocation of resources; revenue enhancement which is derived from the impact of consolidation on bank size, scope, and overall market power; risk reduction due to change in organisational focus and efficient organizational structure; new development which imposes a high fixed cost and need to spread these costs across a large customer base; the advent of deregulation which removed many important legal and regulatory barriers; globalisation which engender a more globally integrated financial service and geographical expansion of banking operations; financial stability characterised by the smooth functioning of various components of the financial system, with each component resilient to shock; shareholders pressure on management to improve profit margins and returns on investment made possibly by new and powerful shareholders blocks. Nigerian Banking Environment According to Adegbaju (2007), there have been remarkable developments in the Nigerian banking sector over the years. Mergers and acquisition in Nigerian banks to took place in 2004 / 2005 commenced after an announcement by the CBN that all commercial banks in Nigeria should upgrade their minimum capital base too twenty five billion Naira before the end of December 2005. Umoren, (2009) examined the benefits of the fortification and consolidation of the Nigerian banking system as it could be seen as the first phase where by such reforms are made to help to guarantee a well built and reliable banking sector that is also considered to be diversified to ensure depositors safety. The role of money in the development of any nation cannot be over emphasized and the Nigerian economy needs to be capable and competitive in the African continent particular as well as the world in general. Madabueze (2008) mentioned that the recent reforms in Nigeria banking sector which required the banks to source for high capital base to the tune of twenty five billion naira which is put at approximately one hundred and ninety million dollars, recorded a sharp drop down of the number of banks from eighty-nine to less than twenty-four currently in operation. He further argued that this will enable the Nigerian banks to become relevant and active players in the international scene, helping the image of Nigeria as a financial capital of some sort of (china of Africa). The Nigerian economic policy was regarded as an economically fragile policy some decades before then but the recapitalization process has enable two recent developments which is a positive message to the international community. The CBN governor at that time, prof. Charles Soludo explained that before the recapitalization commenced, the Nigerian banks have not played their role in economic development because of their fee ble and frail capital base and as such, there was a great need to strengthen them through the consolidation process. Madabueze (2007) opined that the crusade requesting the CBN to be flexible with their position of recapitalization did not involve bankers alone as members of the national assembly in Nigeria also requested the CBN to reverse its decision of recapitalization to the amount twenty five billion naira. Is was further observed as he mentioned that members of the public were completely against the move as they felt the process will worsen the situation and many of them started making panic withdrawals from their accounts. On the other hand, the CBN also had its fair supporters which included the former president of the federal republic of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo who publicly showed his support for the twenty five billion capital base for banks, the Manufacturers association of Nigeria (MAN) who were completely in support of the policy claiming that it will enlarge the national economic base and help to position the real sector. Ogundele (2008) agreed that mergers are essentially the amalgamation of two or more companies that of all or the parties must be in existence legally and the surviving company continues to function in its originally registered name. In some case, merged companies find themselves out of business and leave its assets and liabilities to the acquiring company. Williams and Rao (2006) focus on mergers and acquisition because they are events that correspond to considerable changes in the asset structure of the bank. Commercial bank faces different risk, capital structure and regulatory environments as against firms that have been traditionally studied for governance effects and managerial risk aversion. Owokalade (2006) observed the definition of mergers as posited by the company and allied matters act decree of 1990 that any amalgamation of the undertakings of two or more companies or the undertaking of two or more companies and one or more bodies corporate. He emphasized that a form of dealings combination whereby two or more companies join collectively to become one; being voluntary liquidated by having it interest taken by the other and its shareholders becoming shareholders in the blown up existing company. Kurfi (2010) is of the view that mergers as a principle of the combination of two or more companies that translate same business purposes and agree to come together and decide whichever the given name of one of the companies or absolutely take a new name. He further mentioned that amalgamation is another word for merger. Mergers usually occur between firms of almost same size and are usually friendly. In the case of Stanbic bank and IBTC bank, they arrive at a name StanbicIBTC bank plc after their merger and the resultant name was due to the friendship earlier involved and almost same size of the banks. Kazmi (2006) grouped merger into four: horizontal, vertical concentric and conglomerate mergers. Further explanation revealed that horizontal mergers takes place where there is a combination of two or more firms in the same business, or an organisation engaged in certain aspects of the production and marketing process. When there is a merger of two or more firms but necessary in the same business which might be complementary in supply of materials or marketing is referred to as a vertical merger. The concentric merger takes place when there is a combination of two or more firms related to each other in line of function, customer group or alternative technologies used. Conglomerate merger occurs when there is a combination of two or more firms that are unrelated in customer function, customer group, and alternative technologies. There are situations where a company gets involved in all the above listed forms of mergers. For example, HP a computer and printers giant has merged with Com paq recently and before then acquire Apollo computers which related, acquired Agilent technologies which were into chemicals and medical business, acquired Mercury Interactive which was a software company. The UBA Merger Mergers and acquisition is simply a different approach encourage survival of the fittest is to give rise to a stronger, more efficient, better structure and skilled industry. The Guardian Newspaper reported in 2005 the UBA merger started with separate meetings where that boards of directors of UBA and Standard Trust Bank Plc accepted the arrangement for a union of both financial institutions. The bank aimed to become the biggest bank in West African and one of the largest in Africa. When they considered the assets of both banks before the merger, it was observed that had a formidable asset base after accessing their portfolios at that time and when is been concretised, they could customers from all sectors of the economy. It has over 100 branches spread out strategically across the country in what is described as the largest truly online real-time banking network in sub-Saharan Africa. It is often referred to as Nigerias neighbourhood bank. This derives from its national orientation in terms of geographic spread and continuing national expansion. Wheelen and Hunger (2008) confirmed that UBA the former Trade bank and Citi express bank because the firms were different in sizes and as such they can either be friendly or hostile. Todayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s UBA is a merger between two predecessors banks, legacy UBA and Standard Trust Bank (STB) which were ranked third and fifth in size respectively prior to the 2005 CBN reform and consolidation programme. It was a huge success as the ability to anticipate industry trends, coupled with the banks agility, enabled them to be the first successful merger in the history of Nigerian banking industry, thus creating the current UBA plc which its management rates as the largest financial services institution on West Africa. As the economies of Nigeria and Africa continues to improve, following the established path of the emerging market; i.e. increased political stability, improved government finances, growing domestic consumer demand, high commodity prices and significant improvement in the economic indicators, the UBA is well positioned as a warrant on the African renaissance story. The presence of UBA in all commercial centres and major cities in Nigeria and Ghana has earned the bank the nickname: the neighbourhood bank. This appellation ties in with the UBA brand promise. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“The wise choiceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? and guides our retail distribution strategy which enable us to deliver exactly should be expected by both potential and existing customers of the bank in respect to proximity, choice, convenience and customization. UBA is a bank that is operating out of two of the most vibrant economies in the sub region; Nigeria and Ghana, the new |UBA combines the financial strength of fifty-seven year UBA and the young , innovative and technology driven dynamism of the then STB. UBA has maintained a consistent and solid financial performance in its forty-five year history since it began business in 1961. The bank has record history of leading and pioneering innovations in Nigerian financial sector. It is the first ever and only Nigerian bank to surpass the one trillion balance sheet size with contingents inclusive. It is the only sub-Saharan African bank excluding republic of South Africa that has a branch in New York, USA. UBA was ranked the number one bank in Nigeria in 2007, and bank of the year award (Thisday, 2007). This was due to the banks outstanding performance in the banking sector. Euromoney (2000) confirmed that UBA was the best domestic bank in Nigeria and was the first among international banks to be registered under Nigerian law. The bank has received excellence credit ratings both short and long term, global credit rating (SA) AA+ and A+ in 2005.UBA is the first Nigerian bank to offer an IPO following its listing on the Nigerian stock exchange in 1970. UBA was the first Nigerian bank to introduce a Cheque Guarantee Scheme known as the UBACARD in 1986. It was the first bank to introduce the Nigerian Government Bond index in 2006. It was also the only Nigerian company with the GDR programme. The GDR is a negotiable certificate representing ownership of shares. They are quoted and traded in US dollars and the dividends are paid in same currency. It is specially designed to facilitate the purchase, holding and sale of non US securities by foreign investor. This GDR programme enables foreign institutional investors to hold and trade UBA shares without having to expatriate funds into Nigeria. This Depositary Receipt (GDR) is preferred by some investors who are unable to hold Nigerian securities for compliance reasons or due to a lack of the appropriate infrastructure for holding an ordinary share. The GDR also trade, clear and settle according to international market conventions rather than those prevalent in Nigeria (UBA Report, 2008) West Africa and indeed everywhere the bank has presence. It is simple, elegant, vibrant and memorable, combining the mustard seed of legacy STB and the typographic execution of the letters UBA, predominantly in red and white. During the period of the former standard trust bank plc (STB Plc) acquired 27.34% of the United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA plc) and this transaction resulted not a merger between the two banks, whereby all assets and liabilities of standard trust bank Plc were transferred to UBA Plc. The entire share capital of STB was cancelled and STB was dissolved without being wound up and the shareholders of STB were allotted UBA shares. Motives of Bank Mergers and Acquisition Motives of Bank Mergers and Acquisition Chapter One 1.0 Introduction Over the years, the world have witnessed growth and development in the business world and will still record a lot more due to rapid technological growth in recent times. Merger and Acquisitions (MA) has contributed immensely to the worldà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s economic development and also helped indirectly to create stability in some industries in both developing and developed nations. A merger is usually the amalgamation of two or more companies running commercial activities. On the other hand, acquisition is where one company takes over another and the identity of the other company can be eradicated as it becomes part of a larger company. Most MAs between companies have occurred as a result of achieving economies of scale and penetrate into new markets. Many bank employees regard MA as a threat to their jobs as the period will record shareholders demand for reduction of workforce. It will also be problematic to execute Human resource management with, and the environment of MA due to t he changes that will be recorded in the procedures and practices in the new company. The vast majority of mergers acquisitions research is correctional and focuses on publicly traded corporate entities, using quantitative secondary data made available by large number of databases (Meglio and Risberg, 2010). Background to the Study A significant change has been witnessed in the Nigerian banking sector over the years, in respect to ownership structure, number of institutions and locations, as well as the profundity of operations. There are some numbers of effects when companies merge or when one company acquires another company (Cigola and Modesti, 2008). This include reduced expense in production and management cost, deriving It was observed that downsizing, mergers, and acquisitions are examples of the radical organizational responses to increase global completion, improvements in technology, and government deregulation (Shook and Roth, 2010). The changes so far recorded have been predisposed mostly by the challenges posed by issues as globalization, deregulation of the financial sector, and the implementation of a decision making and prudential requirements that are in line with international standards. This is why some companies may deliberately choose to merge with any other readily available in its line of business. The benefits in most cases are much more than the losses if any is recorded. Mergers have also had effects on employees as the process usually leads to an upward or downward review of wages and salaries. There are also cases where the MA leads to downsizing of workforce as new technological operation techniques will be adopted and there will be less needed for human resource compared to the former way of operation. Bank Mergers and Acquisition A significant amount of research has been done to ascertain the success rate of MAs in banks to be able to draw conclusion on its profitability and efficiency (Behr and Heid, 2011). It was pointed out that despite the considerable prospective U.S banking mergers in the 1980s; many of them were not successful in achieving their aim due to the cost of efficiency. Banks have diverse reasons why they merge which relates to the business motives behind it such as managerial incentives (Wood, 2006). The banking industry was partly strengthened through MA as they use the merged assets to build a strong capital base for the bank and more assets that have appreciated value. Soludo (2004) enumerated the fundamental problems of the banks, particularly those classified as unsound, have been identified to include; persistent illiquidity, poor assets quality and unprofitable operations and further mentioned that their major problems also included weak governance , weak capital base, late publicatio ns of annual reports, gross insider abuses and over dependence on public sector deposits. Many literatures indicates that banking sector reforms in Nigeria propelled by the need to deepen the financial sector and reposition for growth, to become integrated into the global financial design; and involve a banking sector that is consulting with regional integration requirement and international best practices (Somoye, 2010). Nigerian Banking Industry In the recent past, Nigerian banks have adopted poles apart strategies to achieve a predetermined least amount capital base during the banking sector consolidation in the year 2004 and 2005 which was put at twenty five billion Naira (Alao, 2010). This process saw a lot of banks in Nigeria to source for funds from all forms of businesses to meet up the demand and at a point, it was observed mergers or acquisition of smaller banks was the only way out of the regulation. MAs is a global phenomenon with an estimated four thousand deals taking place each year. Elumilade (2010) mentioned that banks are the linchpin of the economy of any country. He mentioned that banks in any every country play a vital position in respect to the countryà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s financial system and they could be regarded as vital agents for development process. Banks also are relevant through financial intermediation services and promote economic growth (Afolabi, 2004). According to Ibru (2006), there was an embryonic phase of the Nigerian banking industry which began with the first set of banks started with the African banking corporation which had its headquarter in south Africa and was pioneering by the Nigerian banking system in 1892. In 1894 the British bank for West Africa which now known as the first bank while union bank of Nigeria plc formerly known as the Barclays D.C.O started in 1925. The British and French bank now united bank for Africa was established in 1949. Many other indigenous banks were established and they ushered in the era that saw the constant monopoly erstwhile enjoyed by the foreign owned banks (CBN, 2008) Central Bank of Nigeria and Market Recapitalization The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in 2004 introduced a policy that made it mandatory for recapitalization to be carried out in the banking industry. This was mentioned as the fourth phase of the banks restructuring scheme and all banks should comply strictly before the end of 2005 (Afolabi, 2004). This led the emergence of twenty five consolidated banks and the process encouraged mergers and acquisition in many cases. They were 89 members of the Nigerian banking industry (NBI) prior to the recapitalization. It was recorded that the CBN in 2009 provided two hundred billion Naira to four undercapitalized banks after an audit was carried out which reported that they could face liquidity problems and needed funds to continue normal operations. In addition, the CBN decided to stabilize the system and return confidence to the markets and investors, an addition injection of six hundred and twenty billion naira of liquidity into the banking sector and there is a replacement of leadership in eight banks which has given sector a little more balanced than its formal position (Sanusi, 2010). Relevance of the Research After the bank consolidation in 2005, it was mentioned in a CBN report that UBA Plc and First Bank of Nigeria have been effectively competing with multinationals in various aspects of international business. CBN Report (2007) also revealed that some Nigerian banks after the consolidation were able to register their presence in the developed countries like United States of America and United Kingdom as participate in foreign market areas of funds transfer and loans servicing. Mergers and acquisitions have for long attracted interest of many researchers in academics in trying to predict the outcomes of the deals (Meglio and Risberg, 2010). They further explained that the inconsistency in some research findings has necessitated the need for more integrative frameworks to grasp the complete phenomenon. Also, the researchersà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢ opinion aiming to explain mergers and acquisition outcomes in general have not been able to successfully develop and test a grand theory about MAs. Aim of the Study This research aims to look into the overall motives of banks mergers and acquisition as well as its impact on the Nigerian economy. Research Questions and Objectives Research Questions What are the implications of bank mergers and acquisition? What are the motives behind bank merger and acquisition? How does merger and acquisition impact on efficiency? How can merger and acquisition effect competition in the Nigerian banking sector? Research Objectives To critically evaluate mergers and acquisition in the banking sector To analyse the impact of merger and acquisition in the Nigerian banking sector To evaluate the success of UBA merger and acquisition To identify the success factors of UBA in Nigeria Banking sector Plan of the study The plan of this work has been structured to begin by providing a background of the area under discussion and justifying the need for the study in the first chapter. This would be immediate followed by review of literatures relating to similar issues and traditional views of mergers and acquisition in chapter two. The research method which will highlight how I intend to gather data will be presented in the third chapter. The data analysis and findings will be presented and discussed in chapters four which will be followed by the summary, conclusion and recommendation in chapter five. Summary This chapter gives an insight into the subject matter by examining the different related aspects of the subject that will contribute to the major focus of the other chapters. It is a known fact that MA has positive and negative impacts in any sector or environment where it has occurred and this will give us the opportunity to draw the impact of competition that will bring in the absence of a monopoly situation. Chapter Two Literature Review Recent studies show that the bank recapitalization process that took place in Nigeria in 2005 has been of great importance to the sector. Merger and acquisition across the world have had positive impact in the strength of the firm in most cases. The banking sector in Nigeria across the world has had course to experience MA in some cases and this helped them in restricting in various forms. The UBA merger with STB was a success as the experience of the first generation bank and agility of a new generation bank was put together to produce a stronger UBA Plc. History of Mergers and Acquisitions MA history time and again have surprises many people when they realise that the concept of MA are not new, and on the converse they are progressing from the early years. It helps us to understand the evolution of the concepts in the world. The economic watch (2011) mentioned that there are five major stages of MA which discussed as wave period. Each of these waves recorded its progress associated with it and has a technological support that gave rise to the era. Past experience has also shown that MA are triggered by economic factors. The period between (1897 1904) saw a lot of horizontal mergers as companies which enjoyed monopolistic competition over their area of production such as electricity and transcontinental railroads merging with others in same area. It mainly occurred between heavy manufacturing industries at that time. A lot of mergers failed towards the end of this phase as they could not get the desired efficiency and the state of world economy as at 1903 as well as th e stock market crash on 1904 did not help matters. Chu (2010) reflected to the mergers in Canadian banks in 1889 to 1926 which could be referred to as both the first and second wave period. He explained that economist has not fully explored the mechanisms through which financial developments affects economic growths. Canadaà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s growth trough MA under the period was under study was also associated with higher banking concentration and a wider branch network. Kling (2006) also agreed that the German universal system emerged around 1914 as the big banks in Berlin acquired smaller banks. This development supported industrial enterprise and external growth through industrial enterprise. The second wave or MA was recorded between 1916 and 1929 which were more between oligopolies as that of monopolies in the first era. The post world war economic boom after the First World War supported these mergers. Also, government policies as at that time started to encouraged companies to work together and technological innovation in areas of transportation provided the needed for such MA. Most of the mergers at this time were mainly horizontal or conglomerate in nature. Producers of key metals, petroleum products, food products, chemicals and transport equipments were mainly involved in the mergers of this period. Investment also supported very in merger as at the period but the great depression of 1929 and the stock market crash in same year brought period to an end. There were mainly conglomerate mergers as at 1965 to 1969 which was stimulated by sky-scraping stock prices, interest rates, and stringent enforcement of antitrust law in the third wave merger. This period did not end well as government were becoming too harsh towards them end of the period but a few companies did well in the 1970s. The fourth merger wave was within 1981 to 1989 recorded mergers in some industries such as airline, banking, oil and gas and pharmaceutical. There many cases of foreign takeovers and the period ended with anti takeover laws, reforms in financial institution and the gulf war. Kim and white (1998) analyzed almost all commercial banks mergers in the united states between 1985 and 1991, and found out evidence of decreasing cost efficiencies in most mergers, except for mergers between very large financial institutions. The small and medium commercial banks decreased efficiencies after merger. Globalization, stock market boom and deregulation in the telecommunication, banking and petroleum industries were major characteristics of the fifth merger. Most of the mergers at this time were geared towards profit maximization but the burst of the stock bubble also ended this era. Huyghebaert and Luypaert (2009) states that in the year 2007 alone, there almost forty thousand deals announced in respect mergers and acquisitions across the world. This accounted for an aggregate value deal value of one thousand, three hundred and forty-five billion dollars. Ernst and Young (1995) also identified the alternatives of acquisition: financial, geographic, and symbiotic and absorption acquisitions. In the case of financial is where a company is bought into a holding company for the purpose of restructuring. The main objectives for the acquisition are mainly to eradication, reduce cost and improved efficiency. There are so many firms with ideas to change the world of business but lack the financial muscle to improve in research and development and or invest more into the existing findings. Any business speculator that gets hold of this will ensure that these ideas see the light of the day by an outright acquisition so as to finance the company for growth. Geographic acquisitions are intended to expand the acquirerà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s core business across new frontiers. The term emerging markets rings a bell in business as every investor want to sell products and services where there is a ready market with a thriving huge population. In the rece nt years, most businesses have moved their production sites to Asia where there cheap labour and n emerging market for the product. Some parts of Africa where there reasonable levels of stability have also seen to be good to expand into as a new frontier. The sales of mobile phone handsets the Nigerian market could be seen as a good example a new frontier for Chinese or Japanese phone manufacturers. Companies merge with others in a different location just to get access to the new location as well. Symbolic acquisitions are described as where newly acquired products and competencies are absorbed into the parents business but the acquired company retains a level of independence, absorption acquisition imply that the two businesses are fully integrated, with one effectively loosing identity. This is an effective business strategy as the name of the former company is like an asset and most customers may not continue with the product or services if the name is changed. The case of Tata acquiring land rover in 2009 is a suitable case where the name Tata is known for production of trucks and military vehicles, but land rover is known for luxury cars and as such the change of the name perceived with strength should remain to keep the market moving smooth. The case of absorption acquisition as mentioned before where one companies gradually losses identity could be seen in the case if Safeway supermarket and Morrisonà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s supermarket where Safeway gradually faded away. Chen and Tan (2011) examined how the deregulation of financial services industry has intensified in some European countries a significant portion of business handled by banks. This is because the deregulated banks have more financial capacity to manage and finance businesses with a confidence of measuring up at the end of the day. There were two hundred and thirteen mergers during 1989 to 2004 with the acquirer of a European bank and the target of an insurance company. This was because the growth and success rate of mergers was lucidly clear to business world at time, in that firms were on the lookout for a similar thriving company that they could merge resource and ideas together to achieve economies of scale and reduced overhead cost. Koetter (2007) was of the view that prior to the merger targets perform poorly compared to acquirers in many merger cases. The increasing efficiency of a firm reduces the hazards of takeovers but increases the risk if bank failures. Therefore, the probability of takeovers and failures is influence significantly by efficiency. Imala (2005) identified eight reasons for merger and acquisitions in the financial service sector. The identified reason are in relation cost savings attributed to economies of scale as well as more efficient allocation of resources; revenue enhancement which is derived from the impact of consolidation on bank size, scope, and overall market power; risk reduction due to change in organisational focus and efficient organizational structure; new development which imposes a high fixed cost and need to spread these costs across a large customer base; the advent of deregulation which removed many important legal and regulatory barriers; globalisation which engender a more globally integrated financial service and geographical expansion of banking operations; financial stability characterised by the smooth functioning of various components of the financial system, with each component resilient to shock; shareholders pressure on management to improve profit margins and returns on investment made possibly by new and powerful shareholders blocks. Nigerian Banking Environment According to Adegbaju (2007), there have been remarkable developments in the Nigerian banking sector over the years. Mergers and acquisition in Nigerian banks to took place in 2004 / 2005 commenced after an announcement by the CBN that all commercial banks in Nigeria should upgrade their minimum capital base too twenty five billion Naira before the end of December 2005. Umoren, (2009) examined the benefits of the fortification and consolidation of the Nigerian banking system as it could be seen as the first phase where by such reforms are made to help to guarantee a well built and reliable banking sector that is also considered to be diversified to ensure depositors safety. The role of money in the development of any nation cannot be over emphasized and the Nigerian economy needs to be capable and competitive in the African continent particular as well as the world in general. Madabueze (2008) mentioned that the recent reforms in Nigeria banking sector which required the banks to source for high capital base to the tune of twenty five billion naira which is put at approximately one hundred and ninety million dollars, recorded a sharp drop down of the number of banks from eighty-nine to less than twenty-four currently in operation. He further argued that this will enable the Nigerian banks to become relevant and active players in the international scene, helping the image of Nigeria as a financial capital of some sort of (china of Africa). The Nigerian economic policy was regarded as an economically fragile policy some decades before then but the recapitalization process has enable two recent developments which is a positive message to the international community. The CBN governor at that time, prof. Charles Soludo explained that before the recapitalization commenced, the Nigerian banks have not played their role in economic development because of their fee ble and frail capital base and as such, there was a great need to strengthen them through the consolidation process. Madabueze (2007) opined that the crusade requesting the CBN to be flexible with their position of recapitalization did not involve bankers alone as members of the national assembly in Nigeria also requested the CBN to reverse its decision of recapitalization to the amount twenty five billion naira. Is was further observed as he mentioned that members of the public were completely against the move as they felt the process will worsen the situation and many of them started making panic withdrawals from their accounts. On the other hand, the CBN also had its fair supporters which included the former president of the federal republic of Nigeria, Olusegun Obasanjo who publicly showed his support for the twenty five billion capital base for banks, the Manufacturers association of Nigeria (MAN) who were completely in support of the policy claiming that it will enlarge the national economic base and help to position the real sector. Ogundele (2008) agreed that mergers are essentially the amalgamation of two or more companies that of all or the parties must be in existence legally and the surviving company continues to function in its originally registered name. In some case, merged companies find themselves out of business and leave its assets and liabilities to the acquiring company. Williams and Rao (2006) focus on mergers and acquisition because they are events that correspond to considerable changes in the asset structure of the bank. Commercial bank faces different risk, capital structure and regulatory environments as against firms that have been traditionally studied for governance effects and managerial risk aversion. Owokalade (2006) observed the definition of mergers as posited by the company and allied matters act decree of 1990 that any amalgamation of the undertakings of two or more companies or the undertaking of two or more companies and one or more bodies corporate. He emphasized that a form of dealings combination whereby two or more companies join collectively to become one; being voluntary liquidated by having it interest taken by the other and its shareholders becoming shareholders in the blown up existing company. Kurfi (2010) is of the view that mergers as a principle of the combination of two or more companies that translate same business purposes and agree to come together and decide whichever the given name of one of the companies or absolutely take a new name. He further mentioned that amalgamation is another word for merger. Mergers usually occur between firms of almost same size and are usually friendly. In the case of Stanbic bank and IBTC bank, they arrive at a name StanbicIBTC bank plc after their merger and the resultant name was due to the friendship earlier involved and almost same size of the banks. Kazmi (2006) grouped merger into four: horizontal, vertical concentric and conglomerate mergers. Further explanation revealed that horizontal mergers takes place where there is a combination of two or more firms in the same business, or an organisation engaged in certain aspects of the production and marketing process. When there is a merger of two or more firms but necessary in the same business which might be complementary in supply of materials or marketing is referred to as a vertical merger. The concentric merger takes place when there is a combination of two or more firms related to each other in line of function, customer group or alternative technologies used. Conglomerate merger occurs when there is a combination of two or more firms that are unrelated in customer function, customer group, and alternative technologies. There are situations where a company gets involved in all the above listed forms of mergers. For example, HP a computer and printers giant has merged with Com paq recently and before then acquire Apollo computers which related, acquired Agilent technologies which were into chemicals and medical business, acquired Mercury Interactive which was a software company. The UBA Merger Mergers and acquisition is simply a different approach encourage survival of the fittest is to give rise to a stronger, more efficient, better structure and skilled industry. The Guardian Newspaper reported in 2005 the UBA merger started with separate meetings where that boards of directors of UBA and Standard Trust Bank Plc accepted the arrangement for a union of both financial institutions. The bank aimed to become the biggest bank in West African and one of the largest in Africa. When they considered the assets of both banks before the merger, it was observed that had a formidable asset base after accessing their portfolios at that time and when is been concretised, they could customers from all sectors of the economy. It has over 100 branches spread out strategically across the country in what is described as the largest truly online real-time banking network in sub-Saharan Africa. It is often referred to as Nigerias neighbourhood bank. This derives from its national orientation in terms of geographic spread and continuing national expansion. Wheelen and Hunger (2008) confirmed that UBA the former Trade bank and Citi express bank because the firms were different in sizes and as such they can either be friendly or hostile. Todayà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã¢â€ž ¢s UBA is a merger between two predecessors banks, legacy UBA and Standard Trust Bank (STB) which were ranked third and fifth in size respectively prior to the 2005 CBN reform and consolidation programme. It was a huge success as the ability to anticipate industry trends, coupled with the banks agility, enabled them to be the first successful merger in the history of Nigerian banking industry, thus creating the current UBA plc which its management rates as the largest financial services institution on West Africa. As the economies of Nigeria and Africa continues to improve, following the established path of the emerging market; i.e. increased political stability, improved government finances, growing domestic consumer demand, high commodity prices and significant improvement in the economic indicators, the UBA is well positioned as a warrant on the African renaissance story. The presence of UBA in all commercial centres and major cities in Nigeria and Ghana has earned the bank the nickname: the neighbourhood bank. This appellation ties in with the UBA brand promise. à ¢Ã¢â€š ¬Ã…“The wise choiceà ¢Ã¢â€š ¬? and guides our retail distribution strategy which enable us to deliver exactly should be expected by both potential and existing customers of the bank in respect to proximity, choice, convenience and customization. UBA is a bank that is operating out of two of the most vibrant economies in the sub region; Nigeria and Ghana, the new |UBA combines the financial strength of fifty-seven year UBA and the young , innovative and technology driven dynamism of the then STB. UBA has maintained a consistent and solid financial performance in its forty-five year history since it began business in 1961. The bank has record history of leading and pioneering innovations in Nigerian financial sector. It is the first ever and only Nigerian bank to surpass the one trillion balance sheet size with contingents inclusive. It is the only sub-Saharan African bank excluding republic of South Africa that has a branch in New York, USA. UBA was ranked the number one bank in Nigeria in 2007, and bank of the year award (Thisday, 2007). This was due to the banks outstanding performance in the banking sector. Euromoney (2000) confirmed that UBA was the best domestic bank in Nigeria and was the first among international banks to be registered under Nigerian law. The bank has received excellence credit ratings both short and long term, global credit rating (SA) AA+ and A+ in 2005.UBA is the first Nigerian bank to offer an IPO following its listing on the Nigerian stock exchange in 1970. UBA was the first Nigerian bank to introduce a Cheque Guarantee Scheme known as the UBACARD in 1986. It was the first bank to introduce the Nigerian Government Bond index in 2006. It was also the only Nigerian company with the GDR programme. The GDR is a negotiable certificate representing ownership of shares. They are quoted and traded in US dollars and the dividends are paid in same currency. It is specially designed to facilitate the purchase, holding and sale of non US securities by foreign investor. This GDR programme enables foreign institutional investors to hold and trade UBA shares without having to expatriate funds into Nigeria. This Depositary Receipt (GDR) is preferred by some investors who are unable to hold Nigerian securities for compliance reasons or due to a lack of the appropriate infrastructure for holding an ordinary share. The GDR also trade, clear and settle according to international market conventions rather than those prevalent in Nigeria (UBA Report, 2008) West Africa and indeed everywhere the bank has presence. It is simple, elegant, vibrant and memorable, combining the mustard seed of legacy STB and the typographic execution of the letters UBA, predominantly in red and white. During the period of the former standard trust bank plc (STB Plc) acquired 27.34% of the United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA plc) and this transaction resulted not a merger between the two banks, whereby all assets and liabilities of standard trust bank Plc were transferred to UBA Plc. The entire share capital of STB was cancelled and STB was dissolved without being wound up and the shareholders of STB were allotted UBA shares.