Other African branches push UBA’s profit to N57bn

The United Bank of Africa (UBA) says it recorded a profit before tax of N57.5 billion in its audited half-year financial results which ended on June 30, 2017.

In a statement, Ugo Nwaghodoh, the company’s chief financial officer, said branches in other African countries contributed 32% of UBA’s earnings as the bank grew retail savings and current account deposits by 23% and five percent YTD respectively.

According to the statement, gross earnings for the period grew by 34.5% to stand at N222.7 billion while operating income stood at N161.8 billion as against N116.2 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2016.

“Notwithstanding the impact of naira devaluation and double digit inflation in Nigeria and a number of other African countries where UBA operates, the group managed through its cost lines to deliver a sterling Profit Before tax (PBT) of N57.5 billion, representing a significant growth of 65.5% over N34.8 billion recorded in the corresponding period of June 2016,” the statement read.

“In the same vein, the Group recorded an unprecedented profit after tax (PAT) of N42.3 billion, translating to a 56.2% growth over the N27.1 billion recorded in the half-year of 2016.”

UBA said the group shareholders’ fund grew by eight percent to N483.1 billion as it delivered an 18.2% return on average equity and an interim dividend of N0.20 per share.

Commenting on the result, Kennedy Uzoka, group managing director, said: “The results again demonstrate the strong momentum of the bank, as we deliver continuous improvement across our businesses and key performance metrics.

“The bank’s unwavering focus on customer service excellence is translating to strong operational and financial efficiency gains. We have achieved better pricing on assets and liabilities, leading to continued improvement in the net interest margin to 7.3%.

“Leveraging our service-focused strategy and treasury management, we grew non-interest income by 17% year-on-year, reinforcing our transaction-banking-led approach towards deepening financial inclusion in Sub-Saharan Africa.”