In the Nigerian Financial market, one thing that stands Unity Bank out among its contemporaries has been its resilience and doggedness.
Amidst a harsh operating environment, Unity Bank Plc announced gross earnings of ₦23 billion in its half of the year operations, a three percent increment compared to the corresponding period in 2020. This performance demonstrates the group’s resilience against the backdrop of a challenging macro-economic environment brought about by the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Watchers of financial institutions in Nigeria attributed this gross increase to the institution’s resilience, core professionalism and focus which many say is a testament to the effectiveness of its strategy and capacity to generate sustainable revenue.Many say, the strategic actions that the bank has taken in the past 12 months with substantial focus on retail banking, financial inclusion, e-banking, expansion strategy and a drive for sustainable value creation have reflected on the bank’s performance in the first half of the year. From all indications, the bank is ready to sustain this trend as it strives to surpass the standard it had built in the industry prior to the current year. Growing a 34 per cent pre-tax profit, and recording a N23bn gross earnings in H1 2021 is not a mean feat, especially considering the present state of economy in the nation. It is pertinent to reiterate that despite the challenging business environment during the Covid-19 pandemic and the resultant effect on economies globally, the Bank’s Profit Before Tax was impressive.
The bank said a review of the unaudited half-year result released to the Nigerian Exchange Limited showed notable improvement across key financial matrices.According to a statement from the bank, it grew bottom-line by 34 per cent as profit before tax rose to N1.5bn from N1.12bn recorded in H2 2020.The result also demonstrates the group’s ability to deliver optimal pricing for its interest-bearing assets and liabilities in a declining yield environment, as the profit after tax closed at N1.38bn within the period under review from N1.03bn recorded in the corresponding period of 2020. This has been described as a sign of a stronger recovery in the overall economy and the bank’s key focus market segment after a disruptive pandemic year. Unity Bank Plc has continued to demonstrate resilience and industry leadership. In recognition of its track record of excellence, the Bank’s CEO/MD, Mrs. Oluwatomi Somefun, was named winner of the 5th edition of the Business Day Top 25 CEOs and Next Bulls Award. The Top 25 CEOs award is one of the stock barometer awards structured by Business Day Media in association with the Nigerian Stock Exchange. The bank has been performing incredibly well on the Nigerian Stock Exchange table.Somefun has enjoyed a steady career growth over the past 35 years, 26 of which were in the Banking sector spanning key segments such as Treasury & Investment Banking, Corporate Banking, Retail and Commercial Banking Operations. She displays an in depth of experience in the Financial and Banking sector, and had a distinguished career with UBA group where she led 2 major subsidiaries of UBA as MD/CEO including a start-up company, UBA Pensions Custodian where she was pioneer Managing Director. Prior to this, she served as General Manager and led three critical business units of UBA Group. Her skills and experience span across Institutional Banking, Commercial Banking, Retail Banking and Financial markets. Prior to UBA, Tomi worked with two leading consulting firms: KPMG and Arthur Andersen (now KPMG).
In August 2015, she was appointed Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Unity Bank Plc. Prior to her appointment as Managing Director; she served as the Executive Director overseeing the Lagos and South-West Business Directorates, the Financial Institution Division and Treasury Department of the Bank.
In a statement that earned Unity Bank the award in 2017, the organizers wrote, “For Unity Bank, the 2017 financial year will forever be known as one in which legacy clouds were laid to rest and the Bank arose to a new invigorated dawn. This according to dealers is attributable to the bank’s efficiency in curtailing cost, better market focus, revamp of electronic channels and increasing customer centricity which restored market confidence in the brand.Not just that, the bank was recognized as a ‘Socially Responsible Lender of the Year’ for 2020 by the National Association of Commercial Finance Brokers (NACFB) – the UK’s largest independent trade body for commercial finance brokers.
The ‘Socially Responsible Lender of the Year’ category was introduced for the first time this year, seeking to recognise NACFB Patrons whose core purpose is ethical banking. Unity Bank, no doubt, has delivered its commitment to support businesses and organisations that deliver social value, working closely with Responsible Finance intermediaries, social enterprises, charities and other community-focused organisations in the UK.In 2019, Unity distributed £13.6m to 278 customers, creating 1,188 bed spaces, providing housing for 437 people and developing 28 community facilities, as well as protecting or creating 672 jobs.An additional £12.5m of affordable finance was provided to 207 organisations in the first half of 2020, including a £7.5m loan to the not-for-profit Business Enterprise Fund and £1.5m for Let’s Do Business Finance, to support provisions of CBILs for hundreds of small businesses during the Covid-19 pandemic.Well, there are no doubts that the bank is walking through the rungs of the ladder to clinch the number one spot amongst Tier-A Banks in Nigeria. Now, back to the bank’s sterling performance in the first half of the year, a major highlight of the bank’s result, was the growth in the bank’s loan book, which saw a 22 per cent increase to N246.9bn within the period compared to N202.08bn recorded in H2 2020, it said.The lender said it also sustained growth trajectory in its assets as total assets for the period rose by 11 per cent to N547.37bn from N492.02bn as of December 31, 2020.Other highlights of the financial statement included a 21 per cent jump in fee and commission income to N3.07bn from N2.54bn in the corresponding period of 2020; and N9.87bn uptick in net interest incomes, representing a nine per cent increase from the N9.06bn recorded in the corresponding period of 2020.Interest and similar income increased by two per cent to close at N20.27bn compared to the N19.79bn recorded in half-year 2020. Earnings per share rose by three kobo to close at 11.82 kobo within the period compared to 8.82 kobo recorded in the corresponding period of 2020The bank’s audited result for 2020 showed gross earnings of N764.7 billion, representing 15 per cent increase when compared to N666.75 billion achieved in the corresponding period in 2019.Profit Before Tax (PBT) stood at ₦125.9 billion while non-interest income also rose by 112 per cent to ₦275.5 billion within the same period.
These strategic initiatives, amongst other steps by Unity bank are geared towards a complete transformation of the institution and setting her up on the path of strong and sustainable growth and profitability. No doubt, if it continues in this trend, it will endear the lender to investors.
Olamide Adeniyi is a member of the editorial team of TheScript Newspaper
