UBA Grows 2017 Q1 Profit By 41%, African Subsidiaries Wax Stronger

Following a sterling performance in 2016 financial year, UBA Group has once again delivered 41 per cent year-on-year growth in profit-before-tax in the first three months of 2017.
This was contained in the unaudited first quarter results released to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).
Leveraging on strong growth in interest and non-interest income as well as increased efficiency, UBA recorded N25.5 billion in profit before tax in the first quarter, ending March 31st 2017, compared to N18.1 billion achieved in the first quarter of 2016.
The group also recorded a profit after tax of N22.4 billion in the first quarter, an impressive 32 per cent year-on-year growth compared to N17.0 billion achieved in the corresponding period of 2016. The group sustained its strong profitability recording an annualized 19.4 per cent Return on Average equity (RoAE).
Driven by an unprecedented 43 per cent year-on-year growth in interest income, UBA Group recorded a 38 per cent per cent year-on-year growth in gross earnings to close at N101.2 billion for the three months period ending March 2017, compared to N73.7 billion recorded in the first three months of the year 2016.
The Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of UBA Group, Mr. Kennedy Uzoka, expressed satisfaction with the bank’s impressive performance in the first quarter of 2017, despite stiff competition and a very challenging business environment.
Uzoka said:  “Our performance in the first quarter of the year strengthens our optimism on economic and business recovery in Nigeria and many of our markets across Africa. More importantly, this result is evidence of efficiency gains in our pricing, balance sheet management and operations.
 “Driven by our balance sheet liquidity, we grew interest income by 43 per cent to an unprecedented quarterly run-rate of N77 billion. Buoyed by improving foreign currency supply in Nigeria, remittance and trade services fees almost doubled and foreign currency trading income grew by 148 per cent year-on-year, as we leveraged our ‘customer first’ initiatives to gain market share in these offerings.
“Moreso, it is my pleasure to report that we made further progress in our consistent retail penetration, as reflected in the 12 per cent year-to-date growth in retail savings and current account deposits.
“Notwithstanding the tight interest rate environment, we recorded a 30bps reduction in cost of funds to 3.4 per cent, a positive result of our customer service-led approach to low cost deposit mobilisation. As at Q1, low cost savings and current accounts represent 80 per cent of our deposit funding.”

POSTED BY:OPUOMONI PRIYE
DATE:04/28/2017