NNB Doubles Profit to N349m
Banking
By Ayodele Aminu
In a clear demonstration of its successful return to sustainable growth, NNB International Bank Plc has announced results for the financial year ended February 29, 2004 with a pre-tax profit that almost doubled the previous years figure.
The bank made a pre-tax profit of N349 million for the year 2004, indicating an increase of 92 per cent over the N189 million recorded in 2003.
Similarly, profit after tax nearly doubled, leaping by 97 per cent, from N156 million to N305 million, while gross earnings grew by 37 per cent, from N3billion to N4.1billion, indicating that the bank recorded an improvement in customer patronage during the review period.
In the same vein, the bank's earnings per share of 50kobo increased by 98 per cent, from N5.2kobo last year to N10.19kobo in 2004, while the balance sheet also showed a highly improved performance, with the total assets jumping from N11.77 billion to N16.04 billion.
In spite of the competitive nature of the industry, NNB grew its deposits from N8.20 billion to N13.03 billion, indicating the steadily growing confidence of its customers during the year under review.
The Managing Director, Mr. Alex Okoh, has assured investors, customers, regulatory authorities, and other stakeholders that the new NNB has been successfully re-positioned for rapid growth in the years to come.
He maintained that, based on the performance in each of the last two years, the bank's strategic corporate goal, tagged VISION 10@5, is progressing according to plan. This 5-year corporate financial goal, covering the period February 2003 to February 2008, envisages NNB's rapid and consistent growth to become one of Nigeria's top 10 banks both balance sheet and in its profit before tax by 2008.
The top-flight banker explained that the bank is mapping out its plan to meet the minimum capital base of N25 billion in response to the new policy directive announced recently by Prof. Charles Soludo, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). He added that the Board of Directors is carefully considering a combination of options- alliance with like-minded financial institutions both local and offshore, and a major re-capitalization effort.
For the last two consecutive years, the bank has doubled both its PBT and PAT, attesting to the successful completion of its restructuring and re-positioning program, which began in August 2000, with a Board of Directors led by Mr. Felix Ohiwerei.
NNB International Bank Plc (formerly known as New Nigeria Bank Plc) was sold in 2000 to private investors by the governments of Edo and Delta States. Both state governments have reduced their shareholding in the bank to 5 per each. About 11,000 shareholders all over the federation currently hold 85 per cent of the equity, while the remaining 5 per cent is reserved for the staff of NNB International Bank.
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