UBA grows profit by 905% to N55b

United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc witnessed the highest growth in profitability in the banking sector in 2012 as the bank leapfrogged profit by 905 per cent to about N55 billion.

Audited report and accounts of the bank for the year ended December 31, 2012 released at the weekend showed that it recovered from the N6.8 billion loss it recorded in the previous year on account of loan provisioning that it did to clean up its balance sheet to post a profit of N54.8 billion in 2012.

Profit before tax rose by 295 per cent to N52 billion in 2012, compared with a loss of N26.60 billion in the previous year, while total comprehensive income attributable to equity holders grew by 5,058 per cent to N55.53 billion compared with a loss of N1.12 billion in 2011.

Gross earnings grew by 34.45 per cent to peak at N220.1 billion, representing approximately N56.40billion additional revenue on the N163.7 billion recorded in previous year.

Highlighting the 2012 results, the Group Managing Director, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, Mr Phillips Oduoza, said the results demonstrated the strength and resilience of the bank’s business model.

According to him, UBA had a strong year in 2012 and its success was again driven by the strength of its customer-focused, corporate and treasury driven business model.

“We are confident about our ability to deliver sustainable earnings growth in the future. We will continue to strategically invest in our businesses, manage our expenses and contain cost, whilst continually seeking ways to exceed expectations of our stakeholders,” Oduoza said.

He praised employees of the bank for the turnaround performance, noting that their dedication to customers and clients remains the driving force behind the bank’s success.

“The bank had a good performance for full year 2012, putting us in a position to commence the journey back to industry leadership and setting the stage for the attainment of our long term strategic intent of being a leading Bank on the African continent,” Oduoza said.

Also commenting on the results, Group Chief Finance Officer, United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, Mr Ugochukwu Nwaghodoh, said the bank’s continuing focus on customer service delivery, efficient capital management and returns maximisation has enabled it to post one of the highest returns in the industry with return on equity exceeding 30 per cent in 2012.

According to him, the bank’s ability to serve clients globally with solutions tailored to their needs gives it a strong advantage in today’s rapidly changing and highly competitive market place.

“Adopting a unique business platform across Africa, as a group, has also ensured that we present a single face to our customers and clients around Africa. This does not only help foster collaboration throughout the Group, it also strengthens our ability to deliver value adding and innovative solutions to our customers and clients through our integrated model,” Nwaghodoh said.