Wema Bank grows profit by 14 percent to N2.6bn

Wema Bank on Friday released its audited 2016 financial results for the full year ended December 31st 2016, with a profit after tax of N2.59 billion.
The profit increased by 14 percent from N2.3 billion recorded in 2015, as gross earnings in 2016 grew by 18 percent from N45.8 billion in 2015 to N53.8 billion. Profit before tax also increased by 9.36 percent to N3.27 billion against N2.99 billion in 2015.

Total Assets for the bank as at December 2016 stood at N421 billion representing a 6 percent increase over the N397 billion recorded in the corresponding period of 2015 as loans to customers rose by 23 percent to close the 2016 year at N228 billion from N186 billion recorded in 2015.

Giving further insights into the performance of the Bank, Wema Bank’s MD/CEO, Segun Oloketuyi said, “Without a doubt, 2016 was a challenging year given the spate of economic headwinds that impacted the economy and the banking industry, in particular.

“Despite the tough operating environment, Wema Bank recorded a double-digit growth in gross earnings, which rose 18.48% from N45.79 billion to N54.25 billion driven by an 18.61% and 13.61% increase in interest and non-interest income respectively.”
“Overall, the Bank continued to benefit from its improving brand acceptance and market penetration. This flowed through to the bottom-line with profit after tax being 14.10% higher at N2.59 billion compared to N2.27 billion in 2015.“

“As a financial institution built on public trust, sound risk management practices remain at the core of our business model. The Bank was not immune from the impact of the economic slowdown and a more prudent approach was taken, in providing for some loans.”
“We closed with a Non-Performing Loan (NPL) ratio of 5.07% from 2.67% in the prior year. In addition, our coverage ratio remains robust at 100% with Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) at 11.07%, which is above the regulatory minimum of 10%.”

“Funding remains at the core of the enterprise strategy; we reported an encouraging growth rate in our retail deposit volumes. We also intensified and contracted a couple of partnerships during the year which have contributed in good measure to customer acquisition.”
Looking ahead, we remain committed to leading and defining how the use of technology shapes the banking landscape in Nigeria and indeed Africa, with the introduction of our *945# banking code amongst other innovative service offerings.

It is in this light and in our bid to offer our customers the best of “all worlds”, that I am pleased to announce that Wema Bank would launch the first fully digital bank in Africa in the first half of 2017.

“With this launch, we believe that the banking landscape is set for a major disruption by Wema Bank, with our offer of simple, convenient and reliable banking experience to members of the public. The launch is intended to enhance our business model, improve efficiency and reduce our cost to serve.”

“We expect the vestiges of the headwinds in the economy to remain in 2017. However, we remain optimistic about the Bank’s performance as we leverage on the continued growth of our digital and physical footprints to grow our market share and improve our returns to all stakeholders.”