United Bank for Africa Plc has posted 19.7 per cent return on average equity (RoAE) from 18 per cent projection in 2022 while targeting 20 per cent in the 2023 financial year.
The bank announced the figures during its virtual ‘audited 2022 results conference call’.
According to the report, the group made profit before tax (PBT) of N201 billion in 2022, an increase of 31.2 per cent from N153 billion in 2021, while profit after tax (PAT) increased to N170 billion in 2022 from N119 billion reported in 2021.
It delivered gross earnings of N853 billion, up 29.2 per cent in the previous year and recorded an operating income of N591 billion, representing an increase of 33.6per cent from N443 billion in 2021.
Speaking at the conference, the GMD/CEO of the bank, Mr. Oliver Alawuba said despite the global headwinds across all markets, the management and staff are committed to doing more in 2023 by driving up revenues across all major business segments.
He assured that the bank would continue to proactively respond to issues in innovative and ethical manner to create value for all stakeholders.
He said the new executive management team swung into action and revalidated its aspiration to become a leading financial institution in Nigeria, lead in Africa and ranked among the three most profitable banks and a systemically important bank (SIB) in all the countries where it operates.
“We are positioned to take Africa to the world and bring the world to Africa through capital and investment funds flows.
“We also remain focused on simplifying trade and cross-border payment across the continent with UBA as one of the leading banks championing the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), an AfCFTA agenda and brainchild of Afreximbank which is currently operating in six pilot countries in West Africa – Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia, and Gambia.
“Collectively, we are committed to providing quality leadership, a conducive work environment for our workforce and excellent customer experience that will continually translate to improving the bottom-line and our shareholders’ value in the short, medium and long term,” he said.
Speaking on the 2022 performance, Alawuba said: “Despite volatile market conditions and many operational challenges, your Bank continued to deliver on key strengths built in the past years.”
He noted that with the overall objective of stimulating growth in the real sector, UBA grew its loan portfolio by N605 billion, or 21.4per cent, from the prior year.
“We continue to maintain a close focus on cost efficiency and strictly control operating expenses across the Group, including our new strategic investments. Consequently, our reported cost-to-income ratio stood at 59.1per cent.
“In terms of capital adequacy, UBA boasts an excellent capital position with a Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) of 28.3per cent – well above the regulatory requirement of 15 per cent.
“We are committed to delivering improved performances in the years ahead,” Alawuba said.
Going forward, he said: “We have harmonised our forward-looking commitments to drive excellent customer experience at all touchpoints, irrespective of the customer segment or delivery platform.
“Achieve top 3 ranking in a customer satisfaction survey, in all categories, in Nigeria and similar ranking in other subsidiaries; Always ensure zero tolerance to policy and regulatory infractions group wide; continue to focus on resolving all people-happiness related issues, including the deployment of new efficient performance management system to improve our reward management effectiveness and drive aggressive digital banking deployment and adoption.”
