Q1 2021 Unaudited Results: Zenith Bank Grows Profit Before Tax By 4%

<p>&nbsp&semi;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p><em>Q1 2021 unaudited financial results show increase in PBT<&sol;em><br &sol;>&NewLine;<strong><a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;openlife&period;ng&sol;">OpenLife Nigeria<&sol;a><&sol;strong> reports that Zenith Bank Plc&comma; Africa’s leading commercial bank&comma; on Friday&comma; April 30&comma; announced its unaudited results for the first quarter ended 31st March 2021&period;<br &sol;>&NewLine;The results which were announced on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange showed Profit Before Tax &lpar;PBT&rpar; rising by 4&percnt; to N61&period;0 billion&comma; from N58&period;8 billion recorded in March 2020&period;<br &sol;>&NewLine;This is despite a very challenging macroeconomic environment aggravated by the COVID-19 pandemic&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>According to the unaudited statement of account&comma; Profit After Tax &lpar;PAT&rpar; also grew by 5&percnt; from N50&period;5 billion in Q1 2020 to N53&period;1 billion in Q1 2021&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The profitability was driven by the optimisation of the cost of funds and improvement in non-interest income&period; The Bank&&num;8217&semi;s cost of funds reduced significantly from 2&period;6&percnt; in March 2020 to 1&period;1&percnt; in March 2021&period; This was also reflected in interest expense which dropped by 45&percnt; from N32&period;8 billion to N18&period;0 billion over the same period&period; Non-interest income increased by 10&percnt; from N46&period;6 billion to N51&period;2 billion&comma; driven by growth in credit-related fees and fees on electronic products&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Non-interest income was boosted by the increase in fees and commission income&comma; which resulted from the increased volume of transactions across all the Bank&&num;8217&semi;s channels&period; Cost of risk dropped from 0&period;6&percnt; in March 2020 to 0&period;5&percnt; in <a href&equals;"https&colon;&sol;&sol;tribuneonlineng&period;com">March 2021<&sol;a>&comma; which affirms the Bank&&num;8217&semi;s prudent risk management&comma; even as gross loans increased by 2&percnt; from N2&period;92 trillion to N2&period;98 trillion in Q1 2021&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>The Bank&&num;8217&semi;s robust customer acquisition strategy and the effectiveness of its electronic platforms and digital channels enabled it to deliver a N54 billion increment in the savings account balance&comma; which is solely retail&period; Customer deposits grew by 6&percnt; from N5&period;34 trillion in December 2020 to N5&period;68 trillion in March 2021&period; Transactions on electronic channels also grew astoundingly as new customers continue to be attracted to the Bank&&num;8217&semi;s various user-friendly digital platforms&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;<p>Going forward in 2021&comma; the Bank expects that the ongoing economic recovery and improvements in the yield environment will translate into improved numbers for the Group&period; This is expected to be supported by local and international COVID-19 vaccination campaigns&comma; rising commodity prices&comma; and global economic growth of up to 6&percnt;&comma; as estimated by the International Monetary Fund &lpar;IMF&rpar;&period; The Group will continue to position itself to take advantage of positive developments in the domestic and global economy to deliver improved financial performance and returns to all its stakeholders&period;<&sol;p>&NewLine;