Fidelity Bank Plc has released a statement that its profit before tax (PBT) grew by 30.6 percent to N25.1 billion in the financial year ended December 31, 2018 from N19.2 billion in the previous year.
According to reports, the statement shows that the bank recorded 4.8 percent growth in gross earnings from N180.2 billion to N188.9 billion while profit after tax grew by 29 percent from N17.7 billion in 2017 to N22.9 billion in 2018, whilst operating income rose by 13.9 percent from N85.9 billion to N97.2 billion.
Customer deposit, which is a measure of consumer confidence rose by 26.3 percent from N775.2 billion to N979.4 billion just as total assets grew by 24 percent from N1.4 trillion to N1.7 trillion.
In other indices, Non-Performing Loans (NPLs) Ratio dropped to 5.7 percent from 6.4 percent in the 2017 full year (FY) due to a combination of recoveries, loan write-offs and the absolute growth in the loan book. Other regulatory ratios remained above the required thresholds with Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) at 16.7 percent and Liquidity Ratio at 39.0 percent. Buoyed by the strong results, the bank is proposing a N3.2 billion payout which translated to11 kobo dividend to shareholders.
Commenting, Fidelity Bank Chief Executive Officer, Nnamdi Okonkwo, said, “We are delighted by our 2018 numbers, which clearly shows a sustained performance trajectory. We are growing our market share with continued traction in our chosen business segments. We recorded double digits growth in interest income on our liquid assets, digital banking, FX and other income lines.”
As seen in recent years, the bank’s digital retail banking approach has continued to yield positive results. Savings recorded its 5th consecutive year of double digit growth with a 27.7 percent increase to peak at N228 billion.” Savings accounts for over 23 percent of our total deposits, an attestation of our increasing market share in the retail segment”, he stated. Okonkwo also stated that over 42 percent of customers are now enrolled on the bank’s mobile/ internet banking products and more than 81 percent of total transactions done on digital platforms, resulting in 25 percent of fee-based income, coming from digital banking.
