By PETER EGWUATU

United Bank for Africa, UBA Plc yesterday declared Profit Before Tax (PBT) of N39.0 billion and after tax profit of N32 billion for the audited half year results ended June 30, 2015, just as it rewarded its shareholders.

The bank announced the payment of an interim dividend of 20 kobo per share to its shareholders .The results showed  strong growth in earnings and profits, as the bank continued to benefit from its determination to provide value to its large customer base in Nigeria.

In line with best practice in corporate governance, UBA  said it has elected to have its half year results audited, before its release to the Nigerian Stock Exchange yesterday.

UBA’s earnings grew strongly by 21 per cent  to N166.9 billion during the period, compared to N138.2 billion in the same period of June 2014.

The bank’s  PBT also rose by 35.1 per cent to N39.0 billion, while Profit After Tax (PAT) was up a significant 40 per cent to N32 billion within the same period.

Speaking on the results, Phillips Oduoza, Group Managing Director/CEO said “In spite of a challenging operating environment, our business strategy has proved to be resilient, balancing prudence, with an ability to significantly grow bottom line and continue to focus on operating effectiveness. We look forward to continuing to support our customers and working with them to achieve financial success for them and the wider Nigerian and African economies”.

Further analysis of the UBA 2015 half year results showed significant improvement in operational efficiencies. The Bank’s net operating income rose 21 per cent to N108.7 billion in June 2015, compared to N90 billion in the comparable period of 2014. The bank has continued to focus on operational efficiency, with a cost to income ratio of 64 per cent; as against 68 per cent  in the same period in 2014.
Oduoza explained “We delivered strong  growth of 21 per cent in gross earnings  and 40 per cent  in profit after tax”.