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Business News of Tuesday, 20 April 2021

Source: thenationonlineng.net

UBA grows net profit by 27%

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United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc started the business year on an impressive note with double-digit growths across most major performance indicators.

The interim report and accounts of UBA for the three-month ended March 31, 2021, showed that the bank leveraged modest growth in both interest and non-interest income as well as increased efficiency to deliver 24 per cent growth in profit before tax at N40.6 billion compared with N32.7 billion recorded in the first quarter of 2020. Profit after tax also grew by 26.8 per cent from N30.1 billion in March 2020 to N38.2 billion in March 2021.

The bank sustained its strong profitability recording an annualised 20.5 per cent Return on Average Equity (RoAE) compared to 19.9 per cent in the corresponding period of 2020.

The report showed that the UBA Group recorded a 5.5 per cent growth in gross earnings to close at N155.4 billion in first-quarter 2021 as against N147.2 billion recorded in the first quarter of 2020.

The bank’s total assets also rose by 2.5 per cent to N7.9 trillion by March 2021 compared with N7.7 trillion recorded at the end of the 2020 financial year while shareholders’ funds grew to N762.4 billion, up by 5.3 per cent from N724.1 billion posted by December 31, 2020.

Group Managing Director, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, Mr Kennedy Uzoka, expressed satisfaction with the bank’s performance in the first quarter of the year, stating that the result reflects UBA’s capacity to sustainably grow earnings even in a highly uncertain macroeconomic environment.

He added that the robust capital and liquidity positions have positioned the bank as it continues to support its customers across diverse sectors and markets, guided by prudent risk management practices.

“This impressive first quarter 2021 results reflect the capacity of our business to sustainably grow earnings even in a highly uncertain macroeconomic environment. We remain upbeat on the macroeconomic outlook of the countries in which we operate, especially as the COVID-19 vaccine distribution gains traction globally, whilst commodity prices and currencies continue to stabilise.”

Our robust capital and liquidity positions have positioned us to continue to support our customers across diverse sectors and markets, guided by prudent risk management practices,” Uzoka said.

He pointed out the bank’s effort towards diligently executing its priorities for the year 2021, as it leverages people, process, and technology to deliver the best customer experience across all its channels and touchpoints, achieving industry leadership and dominance.

According to him, the bank is making strong progress in Nigeria where its continuous market share and efficiency gains are translating into higher profits.

“We are committed to sustaining this strong start throughout the year, leveraging our customer-First (C-1st) philosophy and unparalleled execution to deliver even stronger returns to our esteemed shareholders in 2021 and beyond;” Uzoka said.

Group Chief Finance Officer, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, Ugo Nwaghodoh, said it was, particularly, pleasant to see the annualised return on average equity of 20.5 per cent and return on average asset of 2.0 per cent by the end of the first quarter, noting that these indices buttress the group’s commitment to delivering sustainable value to its stakeholders.

“We continued to deploy our balance sheet efficiency and digital-led cost optimisation initiatives to achieve desired outcomes. The cost-to-income ratio improved by 200 basis points to 60.4 per cent during the period, whilst the cost of funds settled at 2.0 per cent, a 130 basis points reduction from 3.3 per cent in first quarter 2020,” Nwaghodoh said.

He expressed confidence that the bank will meet and surpass its target for the remaining three quarters of the year.

“We are confident on the strong prospect for earnings growth, particularly as we are better positioned to consolidate recent market share gains in Nigeria and other geographies where we operate. This result is a strong start for the year, and we are optimistic about sustaining the exciting performance throughout the year and beyond,” Nwaghodoh added.