Unity Bank posts N33.9bn gross earnings in 9 months

Unity Bank Plc has declared gross earnings of N33.906 billion for the nine months ended September 30, 2020, and also recorded a 44 percent asset growth during the period.

A review of the unaudited Q3/2020 results released to The Nigerian Stock Exchange showed that the gross earnings of N33.906billion represent an 8 per cent growth from N31.256 billion recorded in the same period in 2019.

The lender’s total assets rose significantly to N420.870 billion in the 9 months ended September 30, 2020, from N293.052 billion in the corresponding period of 2019, representing a whooping growth of 44 percent.

This is even as the bank grew its bottom-line by 6 percent as Profit before Tax, PBT moved up to close at N1.710 billion from N1.611 billion in 2019.

Profit after Tax, PAT equally grew by 6 percent to N1.573 billion compared to the N1.482 billion recorded in the same period in 2019.

This performance comes on the heels of the unmitigated impact of the global pandemic on the economy, which lingered throughout the quarter with its attendant headwinds that slowed down economic activities.

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The lender also substantially grew its customers’ deposit portfolio to N332.362 billion from N257.691 billion for the same period in 2019, creating a 29 per cent increase affirming the confidence reposed by its wide spectrum of the banking public. The lender, it was gathered, rolled out massive customer-centric products to the public especially in the retail space which accelerated the banking patronage during the period.

Commenting on the result, Unity Bank’s managing director/chief Executive Officer, Tomi Somefun welcomed the steady growth of the balance sheet especially from both assets and liability side of the business and across key performance indices.

She said that this has had a sustained impact on the bottom-line, even as the Bank continues to innovate in its e-business product bouquet to target and support value chain business with robust technology and thus diversify its earnings base’’.

Looking ahead, Somefun stated that “One of the areas that will define our strategic direction going forward is an investment in alternative channels leveraging further deployment of resources in technology.

COVID- 19 gave us a chance to test the integrity and scalability of our technology, the IT infrastructure, and the electronic banking channels, and provided us with an opportunity to see where we needed to improve and strengthen, knowing that the future of sustainable banking business is in alternative channels”.

Hope Moses-Ashike

Hope Moses-Ashike is an Associate Editor, Banking and Finance, with more than a decade of experience reporting on Nigeria’s financial system and broader economy. She closely tracks market movements, monetary policy decisions, company disclosures, regulatory actions, economic indicators, and global developments, and interprets what they mean for businesses, investors, policymakers, and households. Her reporting helps readers understand complex issues such as inflation trends, foreign exchange market dynamics, interest rate decisions, bank performance, and investment risks. She also covers major international events and periodically travels to Washington, D.C., to report on the World Bank/IMF Spring and Annual Meetings. Her dedication to financial journalism has earned her multiple recognitions and invitations to high-level professional development programmes. She is an alumna of the International Visitors Leadership Programme (IVLP) in the United States and holds an Advanced Financial Journalism Certificate from the Press Association Training in London, UK. Her other notable achievements include completing the Lagos Business School CMC Programme, the Bloomberg Media Africa Initiative Programme, and a Master Class in Journalism at Rhodes University in South Africa.