Diamond Bank Plc has reported strong growth in its H1 2017 financial results released on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE, in Lagos.
The interim report and accounts for the Bank’s operations for the first six months of the year, show significant growth in all key financial parameters as profit before tax surged year-on-year by 2.8 per cent to N10.8 billion, this followed the leapfrogging of gross income over total expenses during the period under review.
Most significantly and against industry expectations, the Bank’s gross earnings jumped by 16.1 per cent over the previous year to N114.1 billion while interest income also increased astronomically by 31.5 per cent to N89.1 billion, reflecting the success of the management’s strategic efforts targeted at improving and boosting this income line.
Although the impairment charge increased mildly by 6.9 per cent, which is in tandem with the Bank’s continuation of prudent provisioning, its total asset grew by 0.8 per cent year-on-year to N2.065 trillion, making Diamond Bank one of the top six biggest banks in the country.
Despite the fact that loans to customers shrunk by 1.8 per cent from N1.4 trillion to N1.3 trillion, reflecting the cautious optimism employed by the management to manage and stabilise risk assets as the economy waddles through and out of recession, the Bank’s retail customers grew exponentially with over 6 million Diamond Y’ello customers opening accounts in the last two years.
Although customer deposit base slumped by 1.8 per cent from N1.4 trillion to N1.3 trillion within the period, reflecting the effect of the inflationary spiral on savings, deposit from other banks surged by 31.9 per cent to N136.4 billion from N103.4 billion, reflecting strong confidence and trust on Diamond Bank as one of the systemically important banks in the economy.
Chief Executive Officer.Uzoma Dozie, who commented on the result stated that despite the economic headwind, the Bank would remain resilient and sustain the positive growth throughout the two remaining business quarters.
According to him, the Bank’s strong liquidity and capital adequacy ratios plus its digital infrastructure have strengthened and rightly positioned it to meet customer obligations and offer service deliveries that are beyond banking, adding that the improving macroeconomic conditions will help stimulate and sustain the growth trajectory of the Bank.
Speaking further, he stated that a core strategic focus in the next business quarters is to continue building on the progress made in H1 2017 by accelerating and entrenching the digitalization of products, services and operations, adding that the management will beam its lights on the loan book with a view to improving the quality and further strengthen the balance sheet.
Uzoma added that apart from its world-class products and service delivery driven by a strong digital infrastructure, Diamond Bank’s brand is consistently being enhanced by the management’s focus and involvement in multiple partnerships with domestic and international NGOs and similar organizations, including the Gates Foundation, Women’s World Banking, MTN, Bank of Industry and EFinA.
These partnerships have continued to help stimulate the drive for innovation in financial products and quality service delivery in the financial services sub-sector.
