United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc has announced its unaudited 2020 Third Quarter Financial Results, with impressive growth in Gross Earnings, which rose to N454.4 billion, up from N428.7billion recorded in September 2019.
According to the report filed with the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) on Friday (20 Nov. 2020), UBA reported a Profit Before Tax of N90.4 billion compared to N98.2 billion recorded at the end of the third quarter of 2019. Similarly, the Bank recorded an after-tax net profit of N77.1 billion, thus putting its annualised return on average equity at 16.4%. Operating income also improved by 10.4% year-on-year to close at N293.7 billion, up from N265.9 billion achieved in the corresponding period of 2019.
The Bank continues to maintain a very strong balance sheet, with Total Assets of N7.1 trillion, a 26% increase over the N5.6 trillion recorded at the end of December 2019. UBA benefitted largely from its technology-led initiatives targeted at improving customer experience over the past few years, as Customer Deposits leaped to N5.2trillion from N3.8 trillion at the end of the last financial year. The shareholders’ funds remained very strong at N655.3 billion rising by 9.6% from N598.0 billion recorded in December 2019, thus reflecting a strong capacity for internal capital generation and growth.
Commenting on the results, the Group Managing Director/CEO, UBA Plc, Kennedy Uzoka, said, “In spite of the current turbulence in the operating environment, occasioned by the global pandemic, we have continued to record significant progress in our business segments. Notably, our innovative financial inclusion propositions have helped us moderate cost-of-funds to 3.2% (4.0% in FY 2019), as low-cost deposits (which accounts for 76.2% of our customer deposits) grew 40.8% by the end of the third quarter. Our Direct Sales Agents, Agency Banking Network, and Digital Banking propositions have positioned us at the forefront of financial inclusion across geographies where we operate,” Uzoka stated.
