Yemisi Izuora
Union Bank of Nigeria Plc has declared its unaudited results for the six months ended June 30, 2015. The result indicated that Profit Before Tax (PBT) went up by 53 per cent to stand at N10.2 billion from N6.6 billion for H1-2014.
Its Group Profit Before Tax gained subsidiary sale up from N2.7 billion during the last first-half (H1-2014) to N7.1 billion in H1-2015 while its Total Assets grew by 11 per cent to close at N1.0 trillion in contrast to N921 billion recorded in the previous year.
Also, Net Loans and Advances surged by 17 per cent to N354.5 billion as against N302.4 billion recorded the preceeding period.
The International Finance Reporting Compliance standard report reflected that the Customer Deposits gained 8 per cent to stand at N547.9 billion as against N507.4 billion in 2014, while its net Interest Income rose by 7 per cent to N23.1 billion from N21.6 billion in the comparable period of 2014.
Net Operating Income surged by 10 per cent to close at N38.0 billion from N34.7 billion recorded the preceding year.
Gross Earnings grew by 17 per cent in the first half of 2015 compared to H1-2014, and notwithstanding the significant volatility across the macro-economic landscape; Deposits also continue to move in the right direction with 8 per cent growth when compared to December 2014. Non-volatile deposits alone grew by N55.7 billion during the first half of 2015.
Meanwhile, the bank’s Total Expenses dropped to N27.9 billion as against N28.1 billion in 2014.
Commenting on the 2015 half year results, Emeka Emuwa, Managing Director/CEO of Union Bank Plc, said, “The successful implementation and migration to a new banking platform, Oracle FlexCube UBS, has provided a more stable operating environment for us to serve customers and process routine transactions quicker and more efficiently. In spite of economic headwinds and regulatory changes impacting the financial industry, Union Bank remains on a stable growth trajectory as we implement initiatives to grow our core banking segments.
“As more clarity emerges in the macro-economic environment in the second half, we expect to consolidate the gains we have made in the first half of the year; maintaining our focus on delivering operating efficiencies across our operations and proactively managing our risk whilst exploring emerging opportunities in the economy.”
Further commenting on the half year numbers, Chief Financial Officer, Mrs. Oyinkan Adewale said:
“This was a good performance for the bank across most financial metrics, which can be attributed to our improving fundamentals and operational discipline. In addition to the 53 per cent growth in the Bank’s PBT, the Group PBT also grew. The Group’s PBT increased by N4.4bn in H1-2015 representing a 161 per cent growth over the same period last year, and excluding the sale of subsidiaries.
“For the second half of 2015, our focus remains on continuing to manage funding costs, reducing operating expenses and minimizing impairment costs through proactive risk management. We will also continue leveraging technology to enhance customer experience and reduce the cost of servicing customers.”