Union Bank Consolidates with N13.6bn Profit

Union Bank of Nigeria Plc, the only commercial bank among the erstwhile rescued banks still retaining its identity has continued to improve on its financial performance  as  it Wednesday  reported a  net profit of   N13.6 billion  for the second  quarter (Q2) ended June 30, 2012,  against a loss of N44 billion in the corresponding period of 2011.

While four of the then rescued banks have since been acquired and three were bridged, Union Bank however survived the storm.
According to the unaudited Q2 result to the Nigeria stock Exchange (NSE) the bank a profit before taxation (PBT) of N9.793 billion as against N65.679 billion loss posted last year. However, deferred tax income of N3.758 billion boosted the performance to hit a PAT of N13.6 billion.

A further analysis of the performance showed  a total comprehensive income for the period rising to N11.99 billion as against the loss of N43.50billion posted during the corresponding period last year.

This translated to earning per share of 221 kobo compared to the loss of 326 kobo recorded in 2011. Similarly, shareholders’ funds soared from a negative N188.37 billion in 2011 to positive N188.37 billion this year.

At the group level, Union Bank posted a PAT of N16.14billion, compared to a loss ofN40.30 billion posted during a corresponding period last year.

Likewise, the group assets grew   from N1.038 trillion to N1.049 trillion, group total comprehensive income rose to N19.475 billion compared to a N39.410 billion loss posted in 2011. This also translated to earning per share of 251 kobo as against a loss per share of 305 kobo recorded last year.

The group equity increased to N207.92 billion from negative N164.852 billion posted in 2011.
Union Bank  had opened 2012 on a promising note when it  posted a PAT  of   N6.32 billion for the first quarter of the year.
The performance was attributed to full re-capitalisation, injection of new capital; support from Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria with the clean- up of bad loans; faster service delivery to customers and other  polices of the management.

The Group Managing Director/Chief Executive of Union Bank, Mrs. Funke Osibodu, had while presenting the first quarter earlier said “with this result the bank has indeed begun to move forward in the right direction. We have been able to turn around our loss position of the previous years and more significantly, we now have a healthy and positive shareholders’ fund.”

Union Bank has witnessed a significant rally at stock market in recent weeks due to renewed demand. It went up by 27 per cent last week alone.  It closed at N8.31 per share wednesday.