Wema Bank Plc has posted a profit before tax of N2.61 billion for the half year ended 30 June 2019, a significant increase from N1.81 billion posted in 2018.
Commenting on the results, the MD/CEO of the Bank , Ademola Adebise noted that the financial performance of the bank in the 1st half of the year is largely in line with the expectations and strategic aspirations of its management team.
He said despite the prevailing tepid economic conditions with GDP growing slowly at slightly above 2%, the bank has been able to grow deposits by 20.80% and increase its loan book by 11.41%. ‘The Banks Loan to Deposit ratio (LDR) was above the new minimum threshold of 60% with NPLs below 5%. Gross Earnings increased by 27.47% to N40.83billion from N32.03billion reported in H1 2018 driven by double-digit growth in Interest and Fee-based income. Profit before Tax was N2.61billion, a 43.64% growth when compared to N1.82billion reported in H1 2018,’ he added.
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The MD further said that regulatory ratios of the bank remained above the required thresholds with Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) at 14.59% and Liquidity Ratio at 34.81%.
He added: ‘Within the 1st half of the year, inspired by the need for improvement of women and the society, the bank launched “Sara by Wema”, a community designed to support women to benefit from growth opportunities that help maximize their personal or business goals. Also, within the period, the bank had its first hackathon event, Hackaholics, to bring young Nigerian entrepreneurs together to solve problems using technology and to provide them with financial and business advisory services. ALAT, our flagship digital bank, now accounts for close to half-a-million customers on our platform.”
Adebise further stated that “the economy is still not growing fast enough and there are concerns that the fragile recovery can be derailed if key structural reforms are delayed.”
For Wema Bank, the clear mandate of delivering on the most reliable, convenient and simple banking platform continues and the bank will measure its success by the number of active customers and partnerships that developed across the business landscape. The bank is positive that it will sustain the double-digit ROE numbers and provide better returns to shareholders.
Samson Oyedeyi
