By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The audited financial statements of Zenith Bank Plc for 2023 have shown how the lender has continued to deepen its market leadership in key corporate and retail deposit segments.
In the period under review, the company grew its customer deposits by 69 per cent to N15.2 trillion from N9.0 trillion, with retail deposits constituting 46 per cent of total deposits versus 44 per cent in 2022, growing by 77 per cent to N7.04 trillion from N3.97 trillion, reinforcing increased customer confidence in the Zenith brand.
Business Post reports that the bank’s total assets increased by 66 per cent to N20.4 trillion from N12.3 trillion in 2022, largely due to growth in total deposits and the revaluation of foreign currency deposits.
In addition, gross loans expanded by 71 per cent to N7.1 trillion from N4.1 trillion as a result of the revaluation of foreign currency loans and the growth in local currency risk assets.
In view of the disciplined and diligent approach to risk asset creation and management, the loan growth did not significantly impact the non-performing loans (NPL) ratio, which increased marginally to 4.4 per cent from 4.3 per cent despite the heightened risk environment and challenging operating environment, an attestation to the group’s resilience amid headwinds and a challenging macroeconomic environment.
Also, the prudential ratios remain within regulatory thresholds, with the Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) and liquidity ratio at 21.7 per cent and 71.0 per cent, respectively.
In the year, Zenith Bank witnessed a 125 per cent increase in gross earnings to N2.132 trillion from N945.6 billion in the preceding year, primarily due to growth in interest and non-interest income.
Interest income surged by 112 per cent to N1.1 trillion from N540 billion in 2022, driven by the growth in the size of risk assets and their effective repricing, alongside the rise in the yield of other interest-bearing instruments over the year.
Further, non-interest income grew by 141 per cent to N918.9 trillion from N381.0 billion due to significant trading gains and an increase in gains from the revaluation of foreign currencies.
In the results filed with the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited, the firm improved its pre-tax profit by 180 per cent to N796.0 billion from N284.7 billion, while the post-tax profit went up by 202 per cent to N676.9 billion from NGN223.9 billion.
As a demonstration of its commitment to shareholders, Zenith Bank proposed a final dividend payout of N3.50 per share, bringing the total dividend to N4.00 per share.
Dipo Olowookere