Nigeria
’s mid-tier lender, Wema Bank Plc said on Monday its pretax profit for the period ended December 31, 2016 jumped 8.5 percent to N3.24 billion from N2.99 billion reported a year ago.
Similarly profit after tax (PAT) appreciated by 12.7 percent to N2.56 billion from N2.27 billion recorded the same period of 2015.
Gross earnings of the mid-tier lender grew from N45.8 billion in 2015 audited year end to N53.9 billion in 2016 end; representing a growth of 17.6 percent, Wema Bank said in a filing with the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).
Speaking on the result, the MD/CEO, Segun Oloketuyi gave further insights into the performance of the Bank.
“Without a doubt, 2016 was a challenging year given the spate of economic headwinds that impacted the economy and the banking industry, in particular. Despite the tough operating environment, Wema Bank recorded a double-digit growth in gross earnings, which rose 18.48% from N45.79 billion to N54.25 billion driven by an 18.61% and 13.61% increase in interestand non-interest income respectively.
Overall, the Bank continued to benefit from its improving brand acceptance and market penetration. This flowed through to the bottom-line with profit after tax being 14.10% higher at N2.59 billion compared to N2.27 billion in 2015.
As a financial institution built on public trust, sound risk management practices remain at the core of our business model. The Bank was not immune from the impact of the economic slowdown and a more prudent approach was taken, inproviding for some loans
We closed with a Non-Performing Loan (NPL) ratio of 5.07% from 2.67% in the prior year. In addition, our coverage ratio remains robust at 100% with Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) at 11.07%, which is above the regulatory minimum of 10%.
Funding remains at the core of the enterprise strategy; we reported an encouraging growth rate in our retail deposit volumes. We also intensified and contracted a couple of partnerships during the year which have contributed in good measure to customers acquisition.
Looking ahead, we remain committed to leading and defining how the use of technology shapes the banking landscape in Nigeria and indeed Africa, with the introduction of our *945# banking code amongst other innovative service offerings.
It is in this light and in our bid to offer our customers the best of “all worlds”, that I am pleased to announce that Wema Bank would launch the first fully digital Bank in Africa in the first half of 2017.
With this launch, we believe that the banking landscape is set for a major disruption by Wema Bank, with our offer of simple, convenient and reliable banking experience to members of the public. The launch is intended to enhance our business model, improve efficiency and reduce our cost to serve.
We expect the vestiges of the headwinds in the economy to remain in 2017. However, we remain optimistic about the Bank’s performance as we leverage on the continued growth of our digital and physical footprints to grow our market share and improve our returns to all stakeholders,” he said.
