United Capital Plc, a pan-African financial services group led by Nigerian investment banker Peter Ashade, has delivered a robust financial performance in the first quarter of its 2023 fiscal year. The impressive feat comes on the heels of a significant decline in its profit in 2022.
The Ashade-led firm reported a profit of N2.44 billion ($5.3 million) at the end of the first quarter of its 2023 fiscal year, representing a 5.7-percent increase from the N2.31 billion ($5.02 million) that it recorded in the same period of the previous year.
This remarkable achievement was recorded despite a challenging global economic climate, elevated cost of doing business, and political uncertainty in the domestic economy.
United Capital’s revenue also witnessed a significant increase, rising by 39.17 percent from N4.21 billion ($9.14 million) to N5.34 billion ($11.6 million).
The increase was attributed to higher fee and commission income, a surge in its investment income, as well as a significant increase in its net trading income.
Despite a double-digit percent surge in its revenue the company’s profit only increased by 5.7 percent due to higher operating expenses and an increase in impairment charges on some of its credit.
Despite a challenging operating environment, United Capital’s total assets surged to N727.55 billion ($1.58 billion), a testament to the company’s resilient financial performance. However, shareholders’ funds declined to N26.7 billion ($58 million).
Ashade, the CEO of United Capital, commented on the group’s performance, stating that the company’s business diversification strategy and prudent risk management practice have yielded desired results in line with its long-term vision.
Ashade also emphasized the company’s focus on creating new business opportunities, improving its value propositions to meet clients’ needs, and capturing optimal economic value to deliver decent returns to shareholders.
