… Reports Profit Before Tax of ₦60.62billion, a 174% YonY Growth

Wema Bank Nigeria (“Wema” or “the Bank”)) has released its unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements for the period ended September 30th 2024, to the Nigeria Exchange Group (NGX). The Bank reported profit before tax of ₦60.62bn, representing an increase of 174% over the ₦22.13bn recorded in the corresponding period in 2023.

Wema Bank’s balance sheet remained well structured with total assets growing by 38% to ₦3,084.27 trillion in Q3 2024 from ₦2,240.06trillion in FY 2023. The bank also grew its deposit base year to date by 23% to ₦2,292.30bn from ₦1,860.57bn reported in FY 2023. Loans and Advances grew by 25% to ₦1003.28bn in Q3 2024 from ₦801.10bn in FY, 2023. NPL stood at 3.19% as at Q3 2024.

The bank recorded an improved 3rd quarter performance as Gross Earnings grew by 91% to ₦288.32bn (Q3 2023: ₦150.90bn)). Interest Income was up 81% y/y to ₦229.11bn (Q3 2023: ₦126.67bn). Non-Interest Income up 144% y/y to ₦59.21bn (Q3 2023: ₦24.23bn).

Return on Equity (ROAE) of 38.62%, Pre-Tax Return on Assets (ROAA) of 2.64%, Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) of 14.06% and Cost to Income ratio of 60.47%, speak to the resilience of the brand.

The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Mr. Moruf Oseni said, ‘our Q3 2024 numbers speaks to our resilience despite a tough operating environment. We will sustain our growth trajectory into 2025. The performance is headlined by impressive improvements in Profit before Tax which grew strongly by 174%. The growth of Gross Earnings by 91.07%, Total Assets by 38% and earnings per share at 328.1kobo shows the core improvements to our balance sheet. In addition, our cost to income ratio at 60.48% has witnessed significant improvement from the previous period.

Wema Bank, Nigeria’s foremost innovative app and pioneer of Africa’s first fully digital bank, ALAT, is breaking new ground by pioneering yet another industry first; the ALAT Xplore App, Nigeria’s first licensed banking app for teenagers.

Set to officially launch on Saturday, October 26, 2024, the ALAT Xplore App has been released on the Google PlayStore and iOS App Store, giving teenagers the opportunity to test the app, explore its functionalities and leverage the unique range of solutions tailored to their needs as teenagers, ultimately equipping them with practical financial management prowess as they journey from childhood to adulthood.

With the ALAT Xplore App, finance management becomes more interesting for teenagers and interwoven into their lifestyles, giving them a head-start in their journey to financial success.

The ALAT Xplore App features a seamless onboarding experience, offers savings goals that help Teens save towards specific targets, allows airtime and data purchases, incorporates widgets that allow teens customise the App’s interface based on their preferences and, going several steps further, allows teenagers access a debit card issued in their name.

The ALAT Xplore App is a trailblazer in the financial services industry and a gamechanger in personal finance management, restructuring the global standards for financial empowerment efforts and launching Nigeria onto the global stage for innovation.

Teenagers are encouraged to download the ALAT Xplore App on the PlayStore or App Store. To completely onboard, their parents must open an ALAT Xplore Account for them on the ALAT App, to approve their teenager’s use of the ALAT Xplore App.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has hailed the economic reforms implemented by President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

Abebe Selassie, director of the African department at the IMF, spoke during a press briefing in Washington DC., United States.

Selassie said the IMF has consistently advocated for Nigeria’s investment in areas like infrastructure, health, and education

He said the government has taken steps which represent a more effective use of public resources, aimed at unlocking the economy’s vast potential to become more dynamic, attract investments, and drive growth.

“We express our thoughts on what would be a better use of public resources and I think over the years, what Nigeria has been testing for is a lot of investment in infrastructure. A lot of investment that’s required in health, education and the like,” Selassie said.

“Those have been our strong views expressed in Nigeria as continued sustaining subsidies for fuel and other areas.

“At the end of the day, these are really deeply domestic and deeply political choices that governments have to make.

“They have made choices that we think move in the direction of better use of public resources, in a way that will unlock this incredible potential that the economy has to make it more dynamic, to invest, to facilitate growth and we welcome those reforms.”

The IMF director acknowledged that the reforms have come with significant costs, including internal adjustment expenses, noting that improving social protections, especially for the most vulnerable, would be beneficial.

Tinubu, during his inauguration on May 29 2023, declared that the petrol subsidy is gone — a development that immediately led to a hike in the cost of the commodity across the country and spiralling inflation across the board.

The next month, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced the unification of all segments of foreign exchange (FX) markets.

In the face of the economic hardship caused by the policies, Tinubu has repeatedly called for patience from Nigerians, noting that the reforms introduced by his administration are beginning to show positive signs.