GTBank Trims NPL Ratio to 6.5%, Grows Loan Book by 19%

By Dipo Olowookere

Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank) Plc has continued to achieve healthy growth across all its major businesses despite varying degrees of uncertainty and volatility.

Recently, the financial institution released its audited earnings for the 2019 fiscal year and the lender did not disappoint, recording growths in both its topline and bottomline.

In the results, the company printed a profit before tax of N231.7 billion, representing a growth of 7.5 percent over N215.6 billion recorded in the corresponding year ended December 2018.

Also, the bank’s loan book grew by 19.0 percent from N1.262 trillion in December 2018 to N1.502 trillion in December 2019, while customers’ deposits increased by 11.4 percent to N2.533 trillion from N2.274 trillion in December 2018.

GTBank also maintained a well-structured and diversified balance sheet with total assets and shareholders’ funds closing at N3.759 trillion and N687.3 billion respectively.

Full Impact Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) remained very strong, closing at 22.5 percent. In terms of Asset quality, the NPL ratio improved to 6.5 percent in December 2019 from 7.3 percent in December 2018, while the Cost of Risk (COR) remained flat at 0.3 percent.

Complementing the improvement noted in NPLs, the bank maintained adequate loan loss coverage of 126.6 percent for Lifetime Credit Impaired Loans (NPLs) compared with 105.1 percent recorded in December 2018.

The lender continues to be best-in-class in the Nigerian banking industry in terms of financial ratios i.e. Post-Tax Return on Equity (ROAE) of 31.2 percent, Post-Tax Return on Assets (ROAA) of 5.6 percent, and Cost to Income ratio of 36.1 percent.

These ratios reflect the experienced management, and efficient balance sheet structure coupled with the operational efficiency of the bank.

According to the Managing Director/CEO of GTBank, “We exist to provide excellent service to our customers and generate the returns that our shareholders expect. Our strong financial performance in 2019 demonstrates that we are delivering on both fronts.

“We achieved healthy growth across all our major businesses despite varying degrees of uncertainty and volatility, and we are making progress in positioning our business for long-term growth in the face of a rapidly changing competitive landscape.”

He further stated that, “Underpinning our strong financial performance is our commitment to being there for our customers when it matters most. That is why, powered by the fundamental strength of our brand, and guided by our strategy of putting our customers at the centre of everything we do, we will continue to design and deliver financial services that not only solves our customers’ real pain points but also leaves them better after every interaction.”

In recognition of the bank’s bias for world-class corporate governance standards, excellent service delivery, and innovation, GTBank has been a recipient of numerous awards over the years.

Some of the awards include Best Bank in Africa and Best Bank in Nigeria, by the Euromoney Magazine (2019), Best Banking Group and Best Retail Bank Nigeria from World Finance Magazine (2019), Bank of the Year – Nigeria from the Banker Magazine (2018), Most Innovative Bank from the African Investor (2018), and Best Digital Banking Brand in Nigeria from the Global Brands Magazine (2018).