UBA leverages pan-African platform to grow market share

Posts N62 billion PBT in third quarter

United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) has pledged to consistently leverage its pan-African platform to drive new customer acquisition and grow market share across African subsidiaries.

The Group Managing Director of the bank, Kennedy Uzoka, while commenting on the bank’s nine months performance, explained that the bank was poised to increase share of customers’ wallet and banking penetration across all chosen markets in Nigeria and Africa.

“I am pleased with our performance in the first nine months of the year. Notwithstanding the negative economic growth in Nigeria, we maintained growth in earnings and sustained our asset quality. Increasingly, we are leveraging our unique pan-African platform to drive new customer acquisition and grow market share across our African subsidiaries.

“The growth in deposits and total assets reflects the bank’s increased share of customers’ wallet and deepening banking penetration across all its chosen markets in Nigeria and Africa which again accounted for a third of the Group’s earnings,” he said.

The Group CFO, Ugo Nwaghodoh, assured that the bank would continue to balance its appetite for growth and profitability with the strategy of sustaining strong liquidity and capital ratios.

The bank posted gross earnings of N265.5 billion in its third quarter performance, against N245billion achieved in the corresponding period in 2015.

Specifically, its unaudited result for the third quarter ended September 30, 2016, showed gross earnings of N265.5 billion, higher than N245 billion in 2015.

The bank also grew profit Before Tax from N57 billion in 2015 to N62 billion during the period under review.

Similarly, profit after tax increased to N52 billion, up from N48 billion recorded in the comparable period in 2015.

Furthermore, the bank’s Non-Performing Loan (NPL) ratio of 2.5 per cent and 0.9 per cent cost of risk remain one of the best in the industry.

The bank’s third quarter results also showed significant efficiency gains with appreciable growth in operating income by 11 per cent to N183 billion with a significant 21 per cent year-to-date growth in deposits and a similar 26 per cent growth in total assets.

The bank ensured that cost-to-income ratio remained flat year-on-year at 65 per cent despite   external cost pressures which masked the positive results of its cost efficiency initiatives. It also maintained 43 per cent liquidity ratio and 17.6 per cent BASEL II capital adequacy ratio, well ahead of regulatory requirement.