Nigerian banker Tony Elumelu’s UBA posts $164 million in profit in H1 2022

United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA), a leading pan-African financial services group led by Nigerian businessman Tony Elumelu, reported a profit of N70.33 billion ($164.6 million) at the end of the first half of 2022, leveraging its well-diversified income streams and the sustained growth of its loan book to create value for shareholders.

According to figures from the group’s recently released interim results, UBA’s profits increased by 16.1 percent in the first half of 2022, rising from N60.58 billion ($141.7 million) in the first six months of 2021 to N70.33 billion ($164.6 million).

The double-digit earnings growth was driven by an increase in non-interest income from N74.08 billion ($173.4 million) to N96.4 billion ($225.6 million) during the period under review, as well as an increase in interest income from N222.63 billion ($521 million) to N257.36 billion ($602.3 million).

Thanks to the recent increase in earnings, the group’s total assets rose from N8.54 trillion to N9 trillion, while retained earnings surged from N335.84 billion ($790 million) at the start of the year to N367.5 billion ($860.1 million).

The performance prompted the board to propose an interim dividend of N0.20 ($0.000468) per share from its retained earnings account as of June 30, resulting in a total dividend payout to shareholders of N6.84 billion ($16 million).

UBA is one of Nigeria’s leading financial services conglomerates. It ranks as one of the continent’s top banks thanks to its extensive pan-African and international operations in 24 countries and on four continents, including the UK, United States, France, and, most recently, United Arab Emirates.

Elumelu owns a sizable 6.96-percent stake in the banking group, or 2,380,941,756 ordinary shares.

In reaction to the earnings and revenue figures, shares in the banking group closed at N7.55 per share, 3.42-percent higher than their opening price on the Nigerian Exchange this morning, bringing the company’s market capitalization above N250 billion (585.1 million dollars).