Posted by By OMODELE ADIGUN on
Ecobank Nigeria Plc grossed N6.73 billion in earnings within the first six months of the year, its Managing Director.....
Ecobank Nigeria Plc grossed N6.73 billion in earnings within the first six months of the year, its Managing Director, Mr Offong Ambah has said.
Ambah gave the information on Wednesday, while presenting the facts behind the figures of the bank on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), Lagos, explaining further that the amount represents 117 per cent leap over the N3.10 billion recorded as gross earnings the same period last year. He added that the bank's total assets also soar led by 93 per cent from N45 billion to N86.80 billion.
Giving reasons for the rise, the managing director said: "This increase was primarily due to an increase in deposits as well as additional capital injection by shareholders.
"The level of risk assets also increased as additional N23 billion was granted as loans and advances, increasing the total loans and advances to N40 billion from N16.80 billion recorded the previous year."
Following the impressive performance of the bank in its 2005 financial year, it doled out N974.4 million to its shareholders as dividend and awarded a bonus of one share for every existing share.
This translates to 300 per cent appreciation of return on investment for those who bought the bank's shares before its listing on the Nigerian Stock Exchange.
Ambah stated that his management team had already made a thorough review of the performance and put necessary strategies in place to exceed what was achieved in the previous years.
He added: "Ecobank will leverage its leading position as the gateway to the West and Central African markets to realize its vision of being one of the top three in any market in which it operates.
"Drawing from its experiences in over 13 countries, Ecobank hopes to transform Africa into an integrated banking network through the pioneering of such retail banking initiatives as the Ecobank Direct Sales Agents (DSA) and Ecobank Retail Kiosk (ERK); a sales channel for products where customers and prospective customers can seek information about the bank.
"The kiosks, which would be launched in Nigeria soon, could be found in markets, communities, ministries, hospitals, schools, office complexes, factories and residential areas."
Ecobank Nigeria Plc is a dominant franchise of Africa's leading regional bank, Ecobank Group, with the vision of being one of the top three in any market in which it operates. It has a balance sheet of over $2billion and over 2,500 employees and 136 offices across 13 countries and is planning to extend its services to Chad, Equatorial Guinea and Sao Tome and Principe and Sierra Leone soon.
Ecobank has, since its inception over the last 17 years, invested over $300million in the banking sector in West and Central Africa, by far the largest investment by any banking group in the region.
During the year, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated entered into business combination agreement with First Bank of Nigeria Plc. The terms of the agreement include a potential merger of Ecobank Nigeria Plc and First Bank.