By Modupe Gbadeyanka
One of the five biggest banks operating in Nigeria, Access Bank Plc, on Wednesday released its earnings for the year ended December 31, 2017.
In the financial documents obtained by Business Post from the website of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the lender recorded a drop in both its pre and post-tax profits.
While its profit before tax depreciated by 11.36 percent from N90.3 billion in 2016 to N80 billion in 2017, the profit after tax went down by 13.23 percent from N71.4 billion two years ago to N62 billion last year.
However, the gross earnings of the firm appreciated during the period by 20.4 percent to N459.1 billion from N381.3 billion in the corresponding period of 2016.
This was buoyed by the growth recorded in the interest income, 29.35 percent, to finish at N319.9 billion in 2017 against N247.2 billion achieved in 2016.
Similarly, the net interest income appreciated during the period by 17.47 percent to N163.5 billion from N139.2 billion posted two years ago.
In addition, the bank’s non-interest income rose to N139.1 billion as at December 31, 2017 from N133.4 billion as at December 31, 2016, leaving the lender’s operating income to close at N302.6 billion in the 2017 financial year compared with N272.6 billion in the 2016 fiscal year.
A look at Access Bank’s balance sheet showed that its total assets stood at N4.1 trillion in the period under review in contrast to N3.5 trillion it was in 2016.
However, its total liabilities closed at N3.6 trillion as at December 2017 against N3 trillion as at December 31, 2016.
But the shareholders fund increased in the period by 13.41 percent to N515.5 billion compared with N454.5 billion two years ago.
Business Post reports that the basic Earnings Per Share (EPS) of Access Bank stood at N2.18k against N2.50k in 2016.
In order to reward its shareholders, the board of Access Bank declared a dividend payment of 40 kobo per share. Earlier in the year, an interim dividend of 25 kobo per share was paid to shareholders, bringing the total dividend payment for the year to 65 kobo per share.
The dividend would be paid to shareholders on April 25, 2018, the day slated for the lender’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) to be held at the Balmoral Convention Centre, Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos at 10am.
