It was a bumper harvest for shareholders of Zenith Bank Plc. on Wednesday, April 6, 2022 in Lagos, as N97.33 billion was approved as their dividend payment at the 31st Annual General Meeting (AGM).
The shareholders unanimously approved the proposed final dividend of N2.80 per share which brings the total dividend for the 2021 financial year to N3.10 per share with a total value of N97.33 billion.
In spite of a challenging macroeconomic environment aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Zenith Bank Group achieved year-on-year (YoY) growth in gross earnings of 10% from N696.5 billion reported in the previous year to N765.6 billion. This was on the back of a 23% YoY growth in non-interest income from N251.7 billion to N309 billion and a 2% YoY growth in interest income from N420.8billion to NGN427.6billion.
Profit before tax also grew by 10%, from NGN255.9 billion to NGN280.4 billion in the current year. The increase was due to growth in the top-line and very strong management of the treasury portfolio that increased efficiency, resulting in a drop in interest expense by 12% from NGN121.1 billion in 2020 to NGN106.8 billion in the current year.
This further led to a 7% increase in net interest income of N320.8 billion in 2021 from NGN299.7 billion in 2020.
Customer deposits increased by 21%, growing from N5.34 trillion in the previous year to N6.47 trillion in the current year.
The growth in customer deposits came from both corporate and retail customers. Retail deposits grew by N146 billion from N1.72 trillion in 2020 to N1.87 trillion in 2021.
The Group’s continuous drive for retail deposits combined with the strategic rebalancing of its funding base helped to reduce the cost of funding from 2.1% to 1.5% in the current year.
Although operating expenses grew by 13% YoY, growth remains below the inflation rate, and the Group improved its Earnings per Share (EPS) which grew by 6% from N7.34 to N7.78.
Total assets increased by 11%, growing from N8.48 trillion in 2020 to N9.45 trillion in 2021, mainly driven by growth in customer deposits.
With the steady recovery in economic activities, the Group prudently grew its gross loans by 20%, from N2.9 trillion in 2020 to N3.5 trillion in 2021, with moderated NPL ratio from 4.29% to 4.19% YoY.
The Group recorded impressive liquidity and capital adequacy ratios of 71.6% and 21.0%, which remained above regulatory thresholds of 30% and 15%, respectively.
In his statement, the Founder and Chairman of Zenith Bank Plc., Mr. Jim Ovia (CON), thanked the shareholders for their unflinching loyalty, which has enabled the bank to rise to the pinnacle of the nation’s financial services industry.
Ovia assured the shareholders of the bank’s commitment to consistently deliver superior value to them.
Speaking on the bank’s performance, the Group Managing Director/Chief Executive, Mr. Ebenezer Onyeagwu, said: “If you look at the bank’s history over the years, Zenith Bank has always grown, and even within the pandemic, we have maintained a reasonable positive growth trajectory.
“Growth is coming from the fact that we are deploying our digital capability to grow more businesses, simplify our service processes, make our processes more efficient, and deal with customers’ complaints. Apart from developing new products, we are discovering new business verticals, especially within the retail segment, which have significant revenue.”
He added that: “Meeting the expectation of shareholders means we have to work harder. The team is dogged, hardworking, resilient, and above all, we have a very supportive board that comes with superior guidance.”
Commenting on the dividend payout, the Chairman Emeritus of the Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria (ISAN), Sir Sunny Nwosu, expressed the delight of shareholders over the consistent payment of dividends by Zenith Bank, noting that the bank’s shares remain the toast of investors because the bank has never failed to pay dividends to shareholders.
Also speaking on behalf of shareholders, the President of the Association of the Rights of Nigerian Shareholders (AARNS), Dr. Faruk Umar, said: “The bank is doing very well. All the ratios and indices have gone up. And more importantly, while we were in the meeting, I got my alert of the credit of my dividend. This is very commendable. The leadership of the bank has been very effective; we thank Jim Ovia for the leadership he has been giving, he has increased the dividend in spite of the economic hardship in the country, and I believe the GMD is doing very well. I commend the management and staff of the bank, including the board, and I am very confident that this year would also be very good for the bank.”
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