Victor EzejaUnited Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc recorded a 40 per cent increase in its gross earnings from N981.77 billion in 2023 to N1.371 trillion in June 2024.
This was revealed in the bank’s audited financial results for the half year ended June 30, 2024 released to the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) on Monday.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelAccording the financial statement, the UBA’s board of directors have declared an interim dividend of N2.00 per share for every ordinary share of N0.50 each held by its shareholders. This represents 300 per cent increase compared to the N0.50 declared in the similar period of 2023.
The record also showed that interest income also increased by 134.3 per cent to N1.003 trillion up from N428.2 billion recorded in June last year, while total assets went up by 37.2 per cent from N20.6 trillion in December 2023 to close at N28.3 trillion. The bank’s customer deposits also rose by 33.7 per cent from N17.3 trillion recorded at the end of 2023 to N23.2 trillion in H1 2024.
In the period under review, the bank’s profit before tax (PBT) experienced a 0.25 per cent drop from N403 billion in June 2023 to N402 billion at close of the half year. Profit after tax (PAT) recorded decrease of 16.4 per cent from N378 billion to N316 billion in the same period. The bank’s shareholders funds, however, increased by 47 per cent from N2.03 trillion in December 2023, to N2.99 trillion.
Commenting on the half year financial performance, UBA’s Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Oliver Alawuba, attributed it to the bank’s commitment to consistently deliver value to its shareholders. He said: “UBA Group has continued to deliver strong double-digit growth in high quality and sustainable banking revenue streams, driven by a focused growth in balance sheet, transaction and digital banking businesses across geographies in line with our strategic goals.
According to him, company’s performance has been “buoyed by consistent strong growth in all core and sustainable banking income lines. Our intermediation business showed strong growth with net interest income expanding by 143% YoY to N675billion”.
The UBA GMD further stated that for the rest of the year, the bank will focus on increasing customer acquisition, adding that they are making significant investments in technology, data analytics, product research and innovation to enhance t value proposition and customer experience.
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The Executive Director Finance & Risk, Ugo Nwaghodoh, expressed delight at the milestone achieved by the bank in driving operational efficiency, as reflected in cost-to-income ratio normalising around the 50 per cent range.
“Our cost optimisation provides scope for further moderation, as we explore options towards a drastic reduction of our foreign currency denominated cost components, robotizing and automation of processes and application of artificial intelligence to our operations,” Nwaghodoh stated.
The banks finance director disclosed that the Group will focus on effectively managing the heightened credit, operational, cyber and information security risks, as it continues to conduct its business within the tenets of our moderate risk appetite in alignment with our sustainability goals.
“The Group has made significant progress and is on course to shore up its share capital to support its medium to long term aspirations, whilst aligning with the recent regulatory requirement in Nigeria and other jurisdictions. that we operate in,” Nwaghodoh further explained.
United Bank for Africa Plc is a leading Pan-African financial institution, offering banking services to more than 35 million customers, across 1,000 business offices and customer touch points in 20 African countries.
With presence in New York, London, Paris and Dubai, UBA is connecting people and businesses across Africa through retail, commercial and corporate banking, innovative cross-border payments and remittances, trade finance and ancillary banking services.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist with six years of experience writing on economy, politics and energy. He holds a Masters degree in Mass Communication.
