By Rukayat Adeyemi
UNITED Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, has posted N525.31 billion Profit after tax for the third quarter ended Sept. 30.
The bank disclosed this in its unaudited financial report filed with the Nigerian Exchange Ltd. (NGX) on Monday in Lagos.
This indicates 16.9 per cent increase, from N449.26 billion posted in 2023.
Its profit before tax also rose by 20.2 per cent to close at N603.48 billion, compared to N502.09 billion recorded in the same period of 2023.
The bank’s gross earnings for the quarter grew by 83.2 per cent to N2.398 trillion, up from N1.308 trillion recorded in the corresponding period of 2023.
Also, its net interest income for third quarter stood at N1.103 trillion, indicating 149 per cent surge from N443.0 billion posted at the end of the third quarter of 2023.
Group Managing Director, UBA, Mr Oliver Alawuba, said that the bank continued to maintain a strong balance sheet in the period under review, with total assets rising to N31.801 trillion.
Alawuba added that the figure represented 54.0 per cent increase over the N20.653 trillion recorded at the end of December 2023.
He noted that the bank benefitted largely from its technology-led initiatives, targeted at improving customer experience over the past few years, with its total deposits rising to N26.50 trillion.
According to him, this showed 52.7 per cent increase from N17.355 trillion at the end of the last financial year.
Alawuba further said UBA’s shareholders’ funds grew to N3.585 trillion from N2.030 trillion recorded in December 2023, due to strong capacity for internal capital generation and growth.
The GMD noted that the group continues to record strong and sustainable growth in its various revenue streams, building on its strong performance earlier in the year.
According to him, the bank’s performance has been underpinned by consistent strong growth on all core and sustainable banking income lines.
“The UBA group achieved a profit before tax of N603.5 billion and our intermediation business continues to show strong growth with net interest income expanding by 149 per cent Year-On-Year to N1.10trillion.
“NIM closed at 8.03 per cent, which is 17.60 per cent above the 2023 position, despite persisting macroeconomic headwinds, geopolitical tensions, insecurity, inflationary pressure and exchange rate volatilities across our markets.
“Our substantial investments in technology are yielding tangible business value. This commitment is instrumental in delivering enhanced customer experiences and optimising operational efficiency,”he said.
Commenting, the bank’s Executive Director, Finance and Risk, Mr Ugo Nwaghodoh, expressed excitement on the milestone reached in driving operational efficiency.
Nwaghodoh said this was reflected in cost-to-income ratio normalising around the 50 per cent range.
He stated that the growth recorded on the shareholders’ funds demonstrated the group’s significant capacity for future growth.
On plans to consolidate the bank’s performance for the rest of the 2024 financial year and beyond, Nwaghodoh said, “We remain on track with various strategies to optimise our cost of funds and operating expenses.
“The group has finalised plans 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.
“UBA remains committed to sustainable growth in its core banking revenue lines and maintaining its strong compliance and risk management culture, even as the group identifies further opportunities to expand.”
UBA is a Pan-African financial institution offering banking services to more than 45 million customers, across 1,000 business offices and customer touch points in 20 African countries. (NAN)
