By Dipo Olowookere
Fidelity Bank shareholders will receive a final dividend of 60 Kobo per share if approved at the next Annual General Meeting (AGM), bringing the total dividend for the 2023 financial year to 85 Kobo per share, 70.0 per cent higher than the 50 kobo per share paid in the previous year, Business Post reports.
The bank is paying the cash reward for the 2023 fiscal year after it grew its profit before tax (PBT) by 131.5 per cent to N124.3 billion and increased its profit after tax (PAT) by 112.9 per cent to N99.5 billion.
In the audited results released to the investing community through the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Monday, the tier-2 lender attributed the rise in profits to an improvement in gross earnings by 64.9 per cent to N555.83 billion, driven by 81.6 per cent growth in net interest income to N277.4 billion from N152.7 billion in the 2022 fiscal year.
It was observed that expansion in the net interest income was driven by a 55.5 per cent increase in interest income, thus reflecting a steady rise in asset yield throughout the year.
The average funding cost dropped to 4.4 per cent due to increased low-cost funds that grew from 83.6 per cent in 2022 FY to 97.4 per cent in 2023.
The combination of higher asset yield and lower funding cost led to an increase in Net Interest Margin (NIM) of 8.1 per cent from 6.3 per cent in the previous year.
Similarly, total customer deposits crossed the N4 trillion mark as deposits grew by 55.6 per cent from N2.6 trillion in 2022 FY due to an 81.1 per cent growth in low-cost funds.
Despite the challenging operating environment, the bank reaffirmed its devotion to helping individuals grow, inspiring businesses to thrive and empowering economies to prosper by increasing net loans & advances to N3.1 trillion from N2.1 trillion in 2022 FY.
Despite the growth in its loan portfolio, regulatory ratios were maintained well above the required thresholds, with liquidity ratio at 45.3 per cent from 39.6 per cent in 2022 FY and capital adequacy ratio (CAR) at 16.2 per cent compared with the minimum requirement of 15.0 per cent.
Commenting on the company’s performance, the chief executive of Fidelity Bank, Mrs Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, said, “We closed the financial year with strong double-digit growth across key income and balance-sheet lines.
“Our performance in 2023 is an attestation of our capacity to deliver superior returns to shareholders despite the difficulties in our operating environment.
“Profit before tax grew by 131.5 per cent to N124.3 billion from N53.7 billion in 2022 FY, leading to an increase in Return on Average Equity (RoAE) of 26.5 per cent from 15.6 per cent in 2022 FY.”
“We recognize the changing dynamics in the Nigerian banking space and the need to monitor and proactively manage evolving risks.
“The proposed final dividend of 60 kobo per share reflects our commitment to strong value creation and returns to our shareholders,” she added.
Adedapo Adesanya 
Modupe Gbadeyanka