UBA’s Profit Rose To ₦153bn In 2021

The United Bank for Africa (UBA) on Monday disclosed that its profit rose to ₦153bn at the end of 2021.

UBA disclosed this in a statement titled, ‘UBA delivers N153bn profit, records 11 per cent balance sheet growth’.

The statement reads, “Despite the huge challenging business and slow economic recovery in most of its countries of operations, UBA’s profit before tax was impressive with a 20.3 per cent growth to N153.1bn, compared to N127.3bn at the end of the 2020 financial year; while profit after tax rose grew by 8.7 per cent to N118.7bn in 2021, compared to N109.2bn recorded the previous year.

“Similarly, net loans grew by 7.7 per cent growth to N2.8tn, while customer deposits rose by 12.2 per cent to N6.4tn, compared to N5.7tn in the corresponding period of 2020, reflecting increased customer confidence, enhanced customer experience, successes from the ongoing business transformation programme and the deepening of its retail banking franchise.”

According to UBA, its gross earnings at the end of the year increased by seven per cent to ₦660.2bn, from ₦616.8bn at the end of the 2020 financial year.

The bank further stated that its total assets grew by 11 per cent to ₦8.5tn in the year under review, from ₦7.7tn in 2020, marking the first time the bank’s assets would cross the ₦8tn mark.

In the year under consideration, the bank’s operating income rose by 10 per cent to ₦443bn compared to ₦403bn in the prior year, while operating expenses closed the period at ₦279bn.

The bank proposed a final dividend of 80 kobos for every ordinary share of 50 kobos for the financial year ended December 31, 2021.

“The final dividend which is subject to the affirmation of the shareholders at its annual general meeting will bring the total dividend for the year to N1 as the bank had paid an interim dividend of 20kobo earlier in the year.”

The Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Kennedy Uzoka, while speaking on the development said that notwithstanding the tight and challenging operating environment, UBA continues to deliver significant performance.

He said, “The year 2021 can best be described as a year of global recovery; economies around the world began to witness early-stage recoveries, as supply chains recover from the devastating disruptions suffered in 2020.”

UBA’s Group Chief Financial Official, Ugo Nwaghodoh, in his statement said, once again, the bank has shown resilience.

“It achieved sizeable growth and strengthened its balance sheet despite the slow pace of economic recovery that characterised the year 2021,” he said.