Union Bank reports impressive H1 2016 results, PBT rises to N8.6bn

Union Bank of Nigeria (UBN) has announced an impressive unaudited result and accounts for half year ended June 30, 2016 with profit before tax gaining 21 per cent from N6.6 billion in first half 2015 to N8.6 billion in H1 2016.

The group profit after tax also increased by 36 per cent to N8.8 billion from N6.5 billion recorded in prior half year of 2015.

Also, from UBN Income Statement, the group gross earnings rose by eight per cent from N55.4 billion to N60.1 billion.

Highlight of the bank’s financial statement for the half year under consideration shows that profit before tax closed at ₦9.1billion as against ₦10.2billion recorded in H1 2015.

Customer deposits up by six per cent to ₦604.5 billion in six months from ₦569.1 billion as at December 2015); as the bank improved service offerings continue to generate customer confidence.

Furthermore, gross loans up 33 per cent to ₦491.9 billion from ₦370.9 billion as at December 31, 2015.

Commenting on the Bank’s half year results, Chief Executive Officer, UBN, Emeka Emuwa, said: “Our sustained focus on executing Union Bank’s strategic transformation objective during the first half of 2016 has delivered growth in our core business, notwithstanding a difficult economic environment.

“The Bank recorded nine per cent year-on-year growth in core gross earnings, driven primarily by balance sheet optimisation.

“With the combination of an improved retail portfolio of product and service offerings, securities trading and efficient cost management, the Bank was  able to deliver ₦8.2billion in core PBT, up 23per cent when compared to ₦6.7billion in the same period in 2015.

“Our core business remains resilient in these challenging times and we maintain our commitment to delivering value to all our stakeholders. We also remain confident that our profit retention strategy will adequately support the Bank’s medium term growth objectives, and continue to strengthen our risk management to mitigate risk and losses,” he added.

Speaking further on the Bank numbers, Chief Financial Officer, Oyinkan Adewale said: “We are pleased that our focus on building the business fundamentals is yielding significant value across the Bank.

“With increasing consumer confidence in our products and services, we have increased our low cost deposits, making us less reliant on more expensive alternative funding sources. This has led to a 20 per cent reduction in cost of funds year-on-year.

“We are also seeing impact on non-interest revenue, which grew during the period. Excluding one-time gains on sale of subsidiaries, non-interest revenue is up by 27per cent to ₦14.9billion inH12016 compared to H1 2015.

“Not withstanding an inflationary environment, our operating costs remain in line with expectations, as our investments in technology continue to yield improved efficiency across the Bank.

“Our liquidity ratio, at 39 per cent, remains well in excess of the regulatory minimum. With a coverage ratio of 188 per cent, we believe that the loan book is well provisioned, given the current economic climate,” she added.