Coronation Merchant Bank Limited, one of Nigeria’s leading merchant banking brand, has recorded 66 per cent growth in gross earnings for the 2017 Financial Year (FY).
The bank released the results to stakeholders at its Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Lagos, in which it posted a Profit Before Tax of N5.1 billion.
Speaking at the bank’s AGM, the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Abu Jimoh, said, “despite the tough market conditions that characterized significant parts of the year, the underlying business fundamentals of the Bank remained strong as reflected in the gross earnings growth of 66 per cent to N25.5 billion in 2017.
He said “As we progress in our journey to become Africa’s premier Investment Bank, we remain committed to providing our clients with superior financial services whilst generating attractive and sustainable returns for shareholders.”
He said the impressive results of the bank in the last 3 years demonstrates the effectiveness of its strategy, the quality of past decisions and the commitment of the board & management to maximize shareholder value while actively expanding franchise in selecting high growth markets where the bank believes it has a competitive advantage.
The bank recorded notable improvement across key performance metrics in 2017, despite the tough and challenging operating environment.
He said that the interest income growth of 67 per cent when compared with last year, and non-interest income growth of 57 per cent in 2017 re-affirm the sustainability of its core business growth.
“We will continue to gain momentum in our efforts to achieve more diversified earnings, as we strengthen our subsidiaries offerings. “Our deliberate focus on the efficiency of our business operations has continued to yield considerable returns for the Bank,” Jimoh added.
The bank further disclosed that despite high inflation rate, cost-to-income ratio increased marginally by 90 basis points (bps) to 46.1 per cent against 45.2 per cent recorded in December 2016, reaffirming it’s commitment to rein in costs while improving operating efficiency.
Aside from the strong earnings performance, the Group recorded a significant growth in its Balance Sheet in 2017. The result showed that total assets increased by 28 per cent to N136.7 billion from N106.6 billion in December 2016, and shareholder’s funds increased to N29.5 billion from N25.9 billion – a valid testament to the resilience of the Group’s operations and its adaptability to current market realities and challenges.
Further breakdown of the results showed that Loans & Advances to customers went up by 42 per cent to N32.3 billion as at December 2017 compared with N22.7 billion reported in December 2016. Customer Deposits up by 43 per cent to N76.4 billion within the period under review as against December 2016, when it was N53.4 billion.
Jimoh, however, noted that Coronation Merchant Bank will continue to maintain a disciplined and prudent approach in asset creation in line with its overall risk management framework and evidenced in growth in loan book of 42 per cent which increased from N22.7 billion to N32.3 billion with zero Non-Performing Loan (NPL).
While general economic conditions and the regulatory environment remain tight, he was confident that new business and lending strategies, embedded risk management culture and continuous cost savings will enable the bank stand firm throughout this period.
“In the coming years, we will focus on the disciplined implementation of our growth strategy to drive efficiency in all segments of our business leveraging fintech and process re-engineering,” Jimoh stated.
