Guaranty Trust Bank Plc yesterday announced a final dividend of N2.70 dividend per share for the year ended December 31, 2020, following the release of its audited results for the year.

The dividend, added to the 30 kobo interim dividend paid last year, brings the total dividend to N3.00 per share. According to the results, GTBank recorded increases in all performance indicators despite the challenging operating environment that prevailed in 2020.

It posted gross earnings of N455.229 billion in 2020, showing an increase of 4.6 per cent from N435.307 billion recorded in 2019.

Net interest income grew by 9.6 per cent from N231.363 billion to N253.668 billion, while net fee and commission income fell from N59.444 billion to N46.935 billion.

Loan impairment charges soared by 298 per cent to N19.573 billion, from N4.912 billion in 2019. Personnel expenses witnessed a marginal increase from N37.284 billion to N37.606 billion, while other expenses rose by 14.2 per cent from N68.879 billion to N78.677 billion.

Profit before tax rose to N238.095 billion, indicating a growth of 2.8 per cent compared with N231.708 billion in 2019. Profit after tax grew by 2.3 per cent to N201.439 billion from N196.708 billion in 2019.

A further breakdown of the results showed that GTBank grew its deposits from N2.532 trillion to N3.509 trillion, while loans and advances improved from N1.501 trillion to N1.662 trillion,

The Group Managing Director/CEO of GTBank, Mr. Segun Agbaje, had last November said the continued resilient performance of the bank despite the headwinds was due to the positioning of its balance sheet to cope with the economic realities.

While speaking on the third quarter result when the bank posted N167 billion, Agbaje had said:

The result is a reflection of how we have appropriately positioned our balance sheet to cope with current economic realities and the challenging business environment. It is also a testament to the enduring loyalty of our customers, the hard work and dedication of our staff and the unwavering support we continue to enjoy from all our stakeholders in our drive to deliver best-in-class financial services and superior and sustainable returns.

He had assured stakeholders that the bank would continue to build on its commitment to enriching lives by leveraging its digital-first customer-centric strategy to improve customer experience and maintain a high standard in service delivery and going beyond banking to create and drive innovative financial solutions that add value to customers’ lives.

Justin Nwosu

Justin Nwosu is the founder and publisher of Flavision. His core interest is in writing unbiased news about Nigeria in particular and Africa in general. He’s a strong adherent of investigative journalism, with a bent on exposing corruption, abuse of power and societal ills.