Economy
Zenith Bank Grows Gross Earnings by 41% in Q1 2023
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
Zenith Bank maintained its impressive performance in the first quarter of 2023 as its gross earnings improved by 41 per cent to N270.0 billion from the N191.5 billion achieved in the same period of last year.
Details of its unaudited financial statements for the period which ended March 31, 2023, showed that the significant double-digit growth was driven by substantial increases in both interest income and non-interest income.
Analysis of the results indicated that the interest income surged by 52 per cent to N191.6 billion from N126.4 billion in Q1 2022, while non-interest income expanded by 27 per cent from N57.2 billion to N72.8 billion.
The growth in interest income can be attributed to the impact of risk asset repricing, while the increase in non-interest income primarily resulted from loan recoveries and foreign currency revaluation gains.
In the financial details of the lender submitted to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited on Friday, April 28, 2023, revealed that the cost of risk moderated from 0.8 per cent to 0.7 per cent during the same period due to an enlarged loan book. However, the cost of funding doubled from 1.3 per cent in Q1 2022 to 2.7 per cent in Q1 2023 due to a considerable spike in interest rates between both periods as interest expense grew from N25.8 billion in Q1 2022 to N70.8 billion in Q1 2023, impacting the net interest margin (NIM), which reduced from 7.3 per cent to 6.9 per cent over the same period, with the cost-to-income ratio improving to 53.4 per cent from 55 per cent in the same period of 2022.
The bottom line of Zenith Bank Q1 2023 results showed an impressive 27 per cent increase in Profit Before Tax (PBT) to N86.6 billion from N68.0 billion in Q1 2022, as the Profit After Tax (PAT) grew by 13 per cent to N66.0 billion from N58.2 billion.
As for the balance sheet, Zenith Bank expanded its total assets by 9 per cent from N12.29 trillion in December 2022 to N13.36 trillion in March 2023, primarily driven by growth in customer deposits and other funding sources, such as borrowings, with customer deposits growing by 2 per cent on a year-to-date basis to N91.4 trillion in Q1 2023 from N8.98 trillion in FY 2022.
Loans and advances also experienced marginal growth of 1 per cent from N4.12 trillion in December 2022 to N4.15 trillion in March 2023 as customers continued to adjust to the full impact of higher rates on risk assets.
Both the capital adequacy and liquidity ratios remained robust at 19.5 per cent and 72 per cent, respectively, with both prudential ratios comfortably exceeding regulatory thresholds.
Zenith Bank said this year, it would maintain its focus on sustainable growth across all business segments as it restructures into a holding company, introduces new verticals to its businesses, and expands into new frontiers.
Zenith Bank’s consistent record of outstanding performance has garnered numerous accolades for the brand, including being acknowledged as the Number One Bank in Nigeria by Tier-1 Capital for the 13th consecutive year in the 2022 Top 1000 World Banks Ranking published by The Banker Magazine. The bank has also received the Bank of the Year (Nigeria) title in The Banker’s Bank of the Year Awards 2020 and 2022, as well as the Best Bank in Nigeria award for three consecutive years, from 2020 to 2022, in the Global Finance World’s Best Banks Awards.
By Dipo Olowookere
Transactions on the floor of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited rallied on Tuesday by 0.75 per cent after investors intensified their demand for local stocks.
It was a tough battle between the bulls and the bears during the session, but the former overcame by a whisker after the bourse recorded 29 appreciating equities and 28 depreciating equities, indicating a positive market breadth index and strong investor sentiment.
The growth posted by Customs Street yesterday could be attributed to the appetite for MTN Nigeria shares, which chalked up 10.00 per cent to settle at N256.30.
SCOA Nigeria appreciated by 9.93 per cent to N2.99, Omatek grew by 9.88 per cent to 89 Kobo, Universal Insurance rose by 8.70 per cent to 75 Kobo, and CAP gained 8.52 per cent to trade at N47.75.
Conversely, Secure Electronic Technology lost 9.88 per cent to quote at 73 Kobo, Abbey Mortgage Bank declined by 9.09 per cent to N3.30, Sunu Assurances tumbled by 8.21 per cent to N6.15, Deap Capital slumped by 7.08 per cent to N1.05, and C&I Leasing depreciated by 6.82 per cent to N4.10.
A total of 440.3 million equities valued at N12.0 billion exchanged hands in 13,087 deals compared with the 1.3 billion equities worth N17.7 billion transacted in 13,891 deals on Monday, representing a decline in the trading volume, value and number of deals by 66.79 per cent, 32.20 per cent and 5.79 per cent, respectively.
Lasaco Assurance ended the session as the most traded stock after it sold 108.1 million units valued at N338.7 million, Access Holdings traded 44.0 million units for N1.1 billion, UBA exchanged 27.9 million units worth N945.7 million, Zenith Bank transacted 26.7 million units for N1.3 billion, and Universal Insurance traded 22.7 million units valued at N16.7 million.
On Tuesday, the insurance, banking and industrial goods sectors jumped by 1.03 per cent, 0.30 per cent, and 0.03 per cent, respectively, and the consumer goods and energy counters lost 0.38 per cent and 0.36 per cent apiece.
The All-Share Index (ASI) went up yesterday by 767.63 points to 103,137.99 points from 102,370.36 points and the market capitalisation increased by N472 billion to N63.333 trillion from N62.861 trillion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
Nigeria ranked as Africa’s leading destination for upstream oil and gas investment in 2024, new research from market intelligence firm, Wood Mackenzie, has shown, accounting for three out of four Final Investment Decisions (FIDs) announced by global oil and gas majors, totaling $13.5 billion.
The FIDs announced within the Nigerian market included Shell’s $122 million investment in the Iseni Gas Project, TotalEnergies’ $566 million commitment to the Ubeta Gas Project and Shell’s approval of the Bonga North Tranche 1 project valued at around $5 billion.
According to the Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Energy, Ms Olu Verheijen, these investments reflected Nigeria’s ongoing efforts to unlock its hydrocarbon potential through investor-friendly policies and strategic global partnerships.
Last year, Nigeria introduced several initiatives to create a conducive environment for oil and gas investors, including new tax incentives aimed at attracting up to $10 billion in natural gas investments.
Nigeria, which is Africa’s largest oil producer, also offered tax relief for gas investors, reducing corporate income tax and extending capital allowance benefits – for deepwater gas projects.
Other policies include the Presidential Directive on Local Content Compliance Requirements 2024 to address the reduction in oil and gas investments caused by high operating costs compared to global markets.
Also, the Presidential Directive on Reduction of Petroleum Sector Contracting Costs and Timelines 2024 reduces the time spent to award contracts for oil and gas projects.
In addition to the directives, Nigeria also launched its 2024 oil and gas licensing round, offering 19 blocks for exploration, demonstrating its commitment to continued collaboration with local, regional and international partners.
Market analysts note that with this momentum, further FIDs are anticipated, including TotalEnergies’ expected $750 million commitment to the Ima Shallow Gas Project in 2025.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange recorded a 0.22 per cent decline on Monday, January 20, with the market capitalisation shedding N2.35 billion to close at N1.073 trillion compared with the preceding session’s N1.075 trillion and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) going down by 6.79 points to wrap the session at 3,105.12 points compared with 3,111.91 points recorded in the previous session.
It was observed that the loss recorded on the first trading day of the week was triggered by UBN Property Plc, which crashed by 20 Kobo to trade at N2.00 per share versus last Friday’s N2.20 per share.
However, the share price of Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc went up by 4 Kobo to 40 Kobo per unit from 36 Kobo per unit, it could not stop the bourse from going down at the close of transactions.
The activity chart showed that on Monday, the volume of securities traded by investors increased by 57.9 per cent to 767,610 units from the 486,215 units traded in the preceding session, while the value of shares traded yesterday slumped by 17.7 per cent to N2.3 million from the N2.8 million recorded in the preceding trading day, as the number of deals declined by 14.3 per cent to 12 deals from the 14 deals carried out in the previous trading day.
At the close of transactions, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc remained the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis with the sale of 4.1 million units worth N162.9 million, followed by Geo-Fluids Plc with a turnover of 9.1 million units valued at N44.0 million, and 11 Plc with the sale of 55,358 for N14.5 million.
Also, Industrial and General Insurance (IGI) Plc closed the day as the most active stock by volume on a year-to-date basis with 25.3 million units sold for N5.9 million, Geo-Fluids Plc came next with 9.1 million units valued at N44.0 million, and FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc with 4.1 million units worth N162.9 million.
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