Zenith Bank Records 117% Gross Earnings Growth In H1

Gross Earnings Growth

One of the leading commercial banks in Nigeria, Zenith Bank, has recorded a 117 per cent growth of its gross earnings in the first half of 2024.

This was revealed in the bank’s audited half-year financial results presented to the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) on Friday, 30th August 2024.

The tier-1 bank’s gross earnings rose from N967.3 billion reported in H1 2023 to N2.1 trillion in H1 2024 which reflects 117 per cent growth.

PBT & PAT Growth

According to a statement on the bank’s website, its profit before tax increased by 108 per cent Year on Year (YoY) from N350 billion in H1 2023 to N727 billion in the corresponding period of 2024.

Also, the bank’s half-year financial statement showed that its Profit after tax rose by 98 per cent from N292 billion to N578 billion in the same period under review. “This led to growth in earnings per share (EPS) by 98% from N9.29 in H1 2023 to N18.41 in the period under review,” the statement added.

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Highlighting the reason for the growth in gross earnings, the statement said it was driven by “acceleration in both interest income and non-interest income.”

The bank’s interest income grew by 177 per cent from N415.4 billion in H1 2023 to N1.1 trillion in H1 2024, while non-interest income rose by 74 per cent from N515.7 billion to N899.3 billion. This, according to the statement, was driven by the growth of and the effective pricing of risk assets.

Assets Growth

Total assets grew by 35 per cent from N20.4 trillion in December 2023 to N27.6 trillion in June 2024, while customer deposits grew by 29 per cent from N15.2 trillion in December 2023 to N19.6 trillion in June 2024.

Operating Costs

The statement further indicated that the bank’s operating expenses rose to N332.2 billion from N148 billion due to increase in Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria’s surcharge amounting to N92 billion.

The statement noted that the bank continued to strive for operational efficiency, resulting in only a marginal increase in cost-to-income ratio YoY from 38.5 per cent to 39.4 per cent.. “The heightened risk environment has fuelled a growth in impairment levels, thus mildly elevating the cost of risk from 8.8% to 9.7%. Cost of funds grew Year on Year (YoY) from 2.6% to 4.4% given the high-interest rate environment. This also resulted in growth in interest expense from N153.6 billion in H1 2023 to N434.4 billion in H1 2024. Despite this, net interest margin grew by 49% from 5.9% in H1 2023 to 8.8% in H1 2024, underscoring the efficient repricing of interest earning assets and interest accruing liabilities,” it stated