Ecobank reports 47% growth in Q2 pre-tax profit

Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) Plc has reported 47 per cent increase in profit before tax for the second quarter ended June 30, 2015.

According to a notice from the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE), the bank’s pre-tax profit grew to N61.414 billion during the first half of 2015 as against N41.664 billion recorded a year earlier, representing an increase of 47 per cent.

The bank’s profit after tax equally rose from N31.629 billion in 2014 to N48.118 billion during the period under review, accounting for a growth of 52 per cent.

Revenue of the Pan African bank firmed up to 21 per cent, from N175.056 billion in 2014 to N211.325 billion in 2015. Commenting on the results, the bank’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Albert Essien said: “Our results for the six months ended June 2015 reflected the strength of our balanced business model and pan-African strategy.

We increased profit after tax by 26 per cent to US$244 million and generated a return on average equity of 18.5 per cent for our shareholders.

Despite a difficult operating environment, we stayed committed to our customers – households and businesses alike – by focusing on providing them with the financial solutions they need.

In the second quarter, loans and deposits grew gradually, following tepid growth in the first. We continued to drive cost efficiencies in our businesses and our cost-income ratio improved to 62.5 per cent compared to 68.1 per cent in the previous year”