GTBank posts N94.3bn profit for H1’20; declares 30kobo dividend

Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) has posted a profit before tax of N109.7 billion for the first half this year, 2020.

The tier-1 lender revealed this information in its financial statements for the period ended June 30, 2020, released recently at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

Analysis of the report reflected impacts of Coronavirus pandemic of the lender’s performance within the period under review following general economic hiccups created by the pandemic.

This, alongside higher operating expenses and lower net fee and commission income, explains the decline recorded in the pre-tax profit during the H1-year period from N115.8 billion from comparative period of 2019.

Also, the profit after tax reduced to N94.3 billion in the first six months of this year from N99.1 billion in the same period of 2019, while the earnings per share went down to N3.32 from N3.50 over the comparative periods.

However, a look at the top line of the results indicated an improvement in the gross earnings for the period, N225.1 billion in H1 2020 versus N221.9 billion in H1 2019.

A further breakdown showed that the interest income rose to N150.5 billion from N146.5 billion, while the interest expense reduced to N26.1 billion from N32.6 billion, with the net interest income at N127.6 billion in contrast to N116.4 billion in the first half of 2019.

Also, the net interest income after loan impairment charges stood at N120.9 billion as of June 30, 2020, compared with N114.2 billion as of June 30, 2019.

However, the fee and commission income was down to N24.7 billion from N35.4 billion, while the fee and commission expense increased to N2.4 billion from N1.5 billion, with the net fee and commission income reducing to N22.3 billion from N33.8 billion.

In the period under review GTBank said its personnel expenses slightly jumped to N18.8 billion from N18.6 billion as a result of an increase in the wages and salaries, which gulped N16.7 billion in H1 2020 versus N16.2 billion in H1 2019.

Also, other operating expenses were higher in the period under consideration when compared with the same period of last year, N49.6 billion versus N39.4 billion and the reason for this was because of higher finance costs, AMCON expenses, deposit insurance premium, advert, promotion and corporate gifts, administrative expense, Communications and sponsorship-related expense, and customer service-related costs.

Commenting on the financial results, the Chief Executive Officer of Guaranty Trust Bank plc, Segun Agbaje, said; “These are undoubtedly tough and trying times for people, businesses and economies the world over.

“Our financial performance in the first half of the year reflects the quality of our past decisions which have broadened our earnings and strategically positioned us to thrive, thus far, through the current global health and economic crises.

“Underpinning this financial performance is our commitment to being there for our customers and the communities we serve, and over the past six months we have lent the full weight of our franchise to safeguarding lives and livelihoods of our staff and customers by leading from the front in the fight to curtail the Covid-19 outbreak and offering grace periods on loans to our small business customers.”

He further stated that “Going forward, our focus is not just to survive this pandemic, but to thrive beyond it. That is why we are going ahead with our plans to reimagine how we create value for all our stakeholders.

“We know that making financial services work for customers goes beyond banking, and in line with our long-term strategy, we will seek to create and drive innovative financial solutions that go beyond banking.”

GTBank has continued to report the best financial ratios for a Financial Institution in the industry with a Return on Equity (ROE) of 26.8 per cent and cost to income ratio of 43.2 per cent.

Renowned for its forward-thinking approach to financial services and customer engagement, GTBank was recently ranked Africa’s Most Admired Finance Brand in the 10th-anniversary rankings of Brand Africa 100: Africa’s Best Brands, the pre-eminent survey and ranking of the Top 100 admired brands in Africa.

The Bank was also awarded the Best Bank in Nigeria by Euromoney Magazine for a record-extending tenth time and the Euromoney Excellence in Leadership Africa Award for its swift reaction in responding to the Covid-19 crisis and for addressing the impact of the pandemic on its customers and communities.