Follow Us on Google
Chinwendu Obienyi
With the approval of its shareholders, United Bank for Africa (UBA), yesterday endorsed the payment of 65kobo final dividend proposed by the board for the 2018 financial year.
Speaking at the bank’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) Tuesday in Lagos, the national Chairman, Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria (PSAN), Boniface Okezie, commended the board and management for the dividend in spite of unfriendly operating environment. Okezie noted that with the financial results, UBA has shown that it could make Africa proud being the biggest bank, adding that its payment to the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) is worrisome.
He said, “In the last two years, we have paid over N30 billion to AMCON. It is high time AMCON sets its eyes elsewhere on making their money as it is impacting negatively on our dividend”. Corroborating Okezie, Nona Awo, another shareholder, noted that the Central Bank of Nigeria needs to stop depriving shareholders of the benefits of their investments in companies.
Awo also commended the bank’s subsidiaries for improved contribution to the company’s performance indicators. Responding, the UBA Chairman, Tony Elumelu, assured the shareholders that UBA Group is on a stronger footing to gain market share in Nigeria and other 19 African countries where it operates.
Elumelu noted that despite the relatively slow recovery of the economy, the Group’s retail deposit grew by 42 per cent, a testament to its improved service channels and enhanced customer service.
“Overall, the Group recorded a profit before tax (PBT) of N106.8 billion. Our interest income also rose by 11 per cent on the back of increased asset base, and African operations contributed 40 per cent of these earnings, reinforcing the positive outlook on our Group’s profitability over the medium to long term”, he said.
The Group Managing Director, Kennedy Uzoka, said that the bank remains liquid and well capitalised with the Group capital adequacy ratio (CAR) ratio of 24 per cent.
