Ecobank Group's Profit Surges in Q1 2021

Ecobank Transnational Incorporated announced that its profit before tax rose by 22 percent to N40.3bn in the first quarter of 2021.

The pan-African bank disclosed this in a statement on its unaudited results for the period ended March 31, 2021, titled ‘Ecobank Group declares superlative Q1 result; PBT up 11 percent to N40.3bn’ on Tuesday.

Ade Ayeyemi, Ecobank Group CEO, said: "The firm's performance in the first quarter was strong, despite the continuing challenging operating environment. Revenues increased 4% to $409 million, and we earned $100 million in profit before tax, an increase of 11% year-on-year. Earnings per share grew by 8%, and return on tangible equity was 15.7%. These results reflect the benefits of our diversification and the sustained focus on our strategic priorities."

The result submitted to the Nigerian Stock Exchange indicated gross earnings of N214.3bn, representing a 10 percent increase against N194.9bn during the same period in 2020.

“We are focusing on achieving execution momentum in our payment business, the sustained reliability of all our platforms, driving increased adoption of our products and services, bringing our non-performing loan ratio low and exceeding the expectations of our customers to truly be the pan-African bank that Africa trusts,” Ayeyemi said.

He noted that these, together with all its investments and achievements to date, would enable it to collectively grow revenues and generate a long-term return of capital to its shareholders, despite the near-term challenges from COVID-19.