March 30, (THEWILL) – Africa’s Global Bank, United Bank for Africa Plc, recorded N236.30 billion in e-banking revenue on a strong financial inclusion drive, according to its audited financial statement for the period ended December 31, 2024.
This constitutes an 88.1 percent growth, compared to the N125.5 billion posted in FY 2023.
The e-banking income includes revenue from electronic platforms, such as mobile applications, USSD channels, Internet banking, ATM, PoS, as well as other debit and credit card transactions.
The revenue haul in technology-related operations of the bank reflected in the Fees and Commission Income which showed an exponential growth of 91.6 percent during the review period from N307.31 billion in FY 2023 to N589.0 billion in FY 2024.
Further analysis of the result showed that e-banking revenue was the largest component accounting for 40.1 percent of the total Fees and Commission Income segment during the period.
Another look into the financial statements of the group showed that e-banking expense increased by 75.7 percent to N178.9 billion from N101.8 billion in the corresponding period.
This reflects the group’s strong commitment to drive financial inclusion as it embarked on strategic expansion of its digital infrastructure during the period.
It also constituted 97.8 percent of the total N233.9 billion Fees and Commission Expense posted in the review period against N118.2 billion in the corresponding period.
The group recorded a stellar performance in its 2024 operations, showing impressive growth with all its major indicators witnessing significant improvement.
The 2024 financials, filed with the Nigerian Exchange showed an impressive rise in the bank’s profit after tax which went up by 26.14 percent to close the year at N766.6 billion, up from N607.7 billion recorded at the end of the 2023 fiscal year.
The Bank’s gross earnings also grew significantly from N2.08tn recorded at the end of the 2023 financial year to N3.19tn in the period under consideration, representing a 53.6 percent growth.
Like in the previous years, the banks’ total assets also rose remarkably by 46.8 percent, from N20.6 trillion in 2023, to close at N30.4 trillion in December 2024; signifying a milestone leap for the bank with the largest spread across the continent.
Despite the highly challenging global economic and business environment, UBA recorded a profit before tax of N803.72 billion representing a 6.1 percent increase from N757.68 billion recorded at the end of the 2023 financial year.
Consequently, UBA Group Shareholders’ Funds rose from N2.0 trillion as at December 2023 to close the 2024 financial year at N3.4 trillion, achieving an impressive growth of 68.3 percent.
As a result of the impressive performance and in fulfilment of the promise made by the UBA Group Chairman, Tony Elumelu, to shareholders at the last Annual General Meeting, the Bank proposed a final dividend of N3.00 kobo for every ordinary share of 50 kobo, for the financial year ended December 31, 2024.
This brings the total dividend in the year to N5.00. The final dividend is subject to the ratification of the shareholders during its upcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM).
UBA’s Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Oliver Alawuba, who was excited at the results, stated that the 2024 financial performance demonstrated the bank’s continued focus on driving earnings growth, preserving asset quality, expanding business operations and deepening market share.
“Our continued investment in our highly diversified global network allows UBA to deliver high quality and consistent earnings. Our businesses have been able to grow product and service income and expand our deposit base, allowing the Group to increase earnings, while maintaining strong spreads and margins,” Alawuba highlighted.
According to him, “With total deposit increasing by 42.03 percent from N17.4 trillion in 2023 to N24.7 trillion and total assets hitting N30.4 trillion from N20.7 trillion, the just released results reflect broad-based growth across all core businesses and were achieved despite prevailing macroeconomic challenges, geopolitical uncertainties, and exchange rate volatilities.”
The GMD expressed excitement at the marked improvement recorded in the bank’s core earnings profile, as he explained that the profit is derived from high-quality income streams from funding intermediation, fees and commissions, thus reflecting strong long-term, sustainable revenues generation capacity.
“Our ex-Nigeria (Rest of Africa and International) operations have expanded significantly over the past five years, now contributing 51.7 percent of Group revenue, up from 31 per cent in 2019, delivering diversification benefits and further boosting long-term shareholder value.
This will continue to grow, as we further explore strategic markets that align with our overall vision. We are currently upgrading our business scope and authorisation in France and considering other viable markets in the short to medium term,” Alawuba noted.
He pointed out the bank’s resolve to invest continuously in technology, data analytics, product innovation, staff training and development, which, according to him, will collectively enhance our customers’ experience.
On his part, UBA’s Executive Director, Finance and Risk Management, Ugo Nwaghodoh, said the bank recorded triple digit growth in net interest income, resulting in remarkable improvement in net interest margin from 6.8 percent in 2023 to 9.0 percent, while also recording strong double-digit growth in fee and commission income lines of 91.6 percent.
“UBA Group continues to demonstrate strong capital levels, with shareholders’ funds growth of 68.4 percent to N3.42 trillion and a solid capital adequacy ratio of 31.0 percent, and as we defensibly position the portfolio to navigate prevailing global and regional macroeconomic upheavals, asset quality improved, with NPL ratio moderating to 5.5percent, with strong provision coverage at 81 per cent”, Nwaghodoh noted.
He explained that as the bank navigates evolving risks, its management remains focused on responsible growth, delivering customer-focused value propositions, whilst ensuring compliance with regulatory requirements in all jurisdictions.
As it pursues the recapitalization project, the Tier-1 financial services institution aims to deepen financial inclusion through implementing cutting edge technology in its operations.
The group last February announced that it had successfully completed its much-anticipated system upgrade, restoring all banking services to normalcy.
In a message to customers, UBA reassured customers that they could now log in to the mobile app and enjoy a smoother, more efficient banking experience.
The bank acknowledged any inconvenience caused by the process and reaffirmed its commitment to providing top-tier financial services.
“We are pleased to inform you that our mobile app upgrade has been completed, and all services have been fully restored. You can now log in and enjoy a smoother banking experience and improved services,” UBA announced.
Sam Diala is a Bloomberg Certified Financial Journalist with over a decade of experience in reporting Business and Economy. He is Business Editor at THEWILL Newspaper, and believes that work, not wishes, creates wealth.
