Despite the challenging environment, Access Bank has delivered strong results in the first quarter (Q1) ended March 31, 2021, recorded gross earnings of N222.1 billion.
The is an increase by six per cent, from N2029.8 billion posted in the corresponding period of 2020. Profit Before Tax (PBT) rose by 30 per cent to N60.1 billion, from N46.2 billion, while Profit After Tax (PAT) grew by 28 per cent to N52.6 billion compared with N40.9 billion in 2020 on the back of a 13 per cent growth in operating Income and a 16 per cent reduction in interest expense.
Group Chief Executive Officer of Access Bank Plc, Mr. Herbert Wigwe, said the performance showed the strong capacity of their business to generate sustainable earnings on the strength of their balance sheet, diverse revenue streams and their dedicated people.
“As a result of effective implementation of our cost reduction strategy, operating expenses remained flat, despite the inflationary environment and increased regulatory cost.
“Our retail banking business also showed steady growth with a 112 per cent increase in revenue to N57.5 billion and a 941,631 new customer sign-on via our financial inclusion drive during the quarter.
This improvement is evidenced by the consistent and robust savings account growth to N1.3 trillion , leading to asignificant reduction in our cost of funds,” Wigwe said.
According to him, with the increased adoption of digital channels and the growing customer base, the bank recorded a 29 per cent growth in USSD transaction value and 40 per cent increase in mobile and internet banking transaction value.
