By Fola James
Guarantee Trust Bank, GTB will continue to generate huge returns for its shareholders as well as deliver topnotch customers’ services, the managing Director of the bank, Segun Agbaje has said.
Agbaje made the promise on the crest of the bank’s declaration of N196 bn profit after tax, PAT for the year ending December 31, 2019.
“At 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,” the bank’s chief executive said.
The figure is an improved performance from the corresponding year 2018, despite the challenging economic, operational environment, analysts say.
The audited report for the year ending December 31, 2019 also indicates Net interest income improved from N222.433 billion to N231, while Impairment charges stood at N4.911 billion in 2019, as against N4.906 billion in 2018.
Profit before tax (PBT) rose by 7.5 per cent from N215.586 billion to N231.707 billion in 2019, while profit after tax (PAT) increased by 6.6 per cent to N196.849 billion from N184.711 billion, the report said.
The bank’s loan grew by 19 per cent from N1.262 trillion in December 2018 to N1.502trillion in December 2019, while customers’ deposits increased by 11.4 per cent to N2.533trillion from N2.274trillion in December 2018.
The bank has also maintained a good balance sheet with total assets and shareholders’ funds closing at N3.759 trillion and N687.3 billion respectively, as Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) stands very strong, closing at 22.5 per cent: non-performing loan (NPL) ratio improved to 6.5 per cent in December 2019 from 7.3 per cent in December 2018 while Cost of Risk (COR) remains flat at 0.3 per cent.
The Agbaje led-management has, therefore recommended a closed dividend of 250 kobo per share, bringing the total dividend to 280 kobo per share, after paying an interim dividend of 30 kobo per share.
In spite of the performance, the bank’s CEO disclosed that more efforts will be channeled towards customers’ satisfaction apart from making sure that its shareholders get huge returns on investment.
“Our strong financial performance in 2019 demonstrates that we are delivering on both fronts,” he said, adding that GT Bank has been well positioned to withstand any economic vagaries.
According to him, “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.”
The bank has improved its customers’ service for better interaction and service delivery he further stated.
Agbaje “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.”
