Fidelity Bank Plc has posted a profit before tax (PBT) of N20.6 billion for the six months ended June 30, 2021, a 72.4% rise above the N12.0 billion recorded same period of 2020.
Similarly, profit after tax (PAT) rose to N19.31 billion from N11.30 billion recorded year-on-year (Y-Y) during the period in review.
These are parts of the performance highlights contained in the bank’s audited half-year (H1) results released to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited in Lagos.
The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Fidelity Bank, Mrs Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, attributed the growth to increased customer transactions and improved operational efficiency, in a period where many competitors experienced a dip in their profits.
Onyeali-Ikpe said: “We sustained our impressive financial performance with double-digit growth in profit as increased customer transactions drove non-interest revenue while improved operational efficiency continued to moderate cost-to-serve.”
She added that “Digital Banking gained further traction as we now have 55.1 per cent of our customers enrolled on the mobile/internet banking products and 89.3 per cent of customer-induced transactions were done on digital platforms.”
As such, other performance indexes show Gross Earnings rose 6.2% Y-Y to N112.3 billion on account of 27.8 per cent growth in Non-Interest Revenue (NIR) to N23.8 billion from N18.1 billion in H1 2020.
We sustained our impressive financial performance with double-digit growth in profit as increased customer transactions drove non-interest revenue while improved operational efficiency continued to moderate cost-to-serve.
The H1 report indicated that NIR was driven by strong growth in commission on banking services by 57.7%; account maintenance charges, 50.6 per cent; digital banking income, 49.4%; and trade income by 33.7% and more.
Also, total customer-induced transactions across all distribution channels increased by 58.0% Y-Y, and 21.2% compared to the first quarter, just as there was substantial increase in lending to the real sector particularly, the SMEs with net loans and advances accelerating by 15.8% year-to-date (YTD) to N1.53 billion from N1.32 billion at the end of 2020.
The impact of the currency adjustment (2020FY: N400.3/$ -H1 2021: N410.6/$), which accounted for a 1.1% YTD growth in the loan book; Cost of risk, 0.3%, while the non-performing loan (NPL) ratio (stage 3 loans) slipped 2.8% from 3.8% by full year (FY) 2020.
Additionally, other regulatory ratios remained well above the minimum requirement: capital adequacy ratio was up 18.8% from 18.2% in 2020FY, Total Deposits 16.5% higher YTD to N1.98 billion from N1.69 billion in 2020FY, driven by increased deposit mobilisation across all deposit types.
Similarly, foreign currency deposits increased by 23.1% YTD at $149 million and constituted about % of total deposits from 17.5% in 2020FY.
Looking ahead, Onyeali-Ikpe assured that Fidelity Bank will continue to harness the benefits of its renewed drive in the diaspora banking space. “We look forward to sustaining the current momentum in H2 by optimising our balance sheet and lowering our cost–to–serve. This will translate to improved earnings while we remain committed to our medium to long-term strategic objectives.”
