Guaranty Trust Bank Plc

AUDITED FULL-YEAR GROUP RESULTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2020: DECLARES A PBT OF N238.1BILLION

Lagos Nigeria - March 18, 2021 - Guaranty Trust Bank Plc ("GTBank"), (Bloomberg: GUARANTY:NL/Reuters: GUARANT.LG), provider of diversified financial services, announces its Audited Financial Results for the year ended 31 December 2020 and declares a PBT of N238.1bn.

Commenting on the financial results, the Managing Director/CEO of Guaranty Trust Bank plc, Mr. Segun Agbaje, said; "2020 was arguably the most challenging year that the world has faced in decades. In such unprecedented times, we sought to live out the full extent of our values; safeguarding lives and livelihoods for our people, our customers and across the communities where we operate. We were on solid footing going into 2020; the strength, scale and liquidity of our balance sheet, coupled with the quality of our past decisions and the efficacy of our digital-first customer-centric strategy gave us the resilience and flexibility to navigate the economic shocks and market volatility that dominated the year."

He further stated that; "Amidst the many challenges that persist, we remain ardent believers in Africa's growth potential. Our world is increasingly digital, and we see it opening new and exciting opportunities for empowering people and uplifting our communities. With our commitment to deepening customer relationships and intense focus on delivering innovative financial solutions, we enter 2021 well-positioned to lead this new world."

Financial Highlights

·      Sustained Earnings

-  Profit before tax of N238.1bn (31 December 2019 N231.7bn) an increase of 2.8%.

-  Profit after tax improved by 2.3% to N201.4bn from N196.8bn of 31 December 2019.

-  Earnings per share of 711kobo compared to 696kobo of 31 December 2019.

-  Final dividend of 270kobo per share.

·      Improved Revenue

-  Interest Income of N300.7bn (31 December 2019: N296.2bn) up 1.5% largely as a result of 2.2% growth in interest income on loans and advances and 6.5% increase in interest income on fixed income securities but partly offset by 56.3% drop in interest income on cash and cash equivalents.

-  Non-Interest Income of N154.5bn comprising of Fee and commission income, Net trading gains, and Other income (31 December 2019: N139.1bn) up 11.1%. The Non-interest income growth resulted largely from 37.7% increase in Other Income, partly offset by 14.8% dip in Fee and Commission income.

-  Net interest margin remained strong at 9.3% (31 December 2019: 9.3%).

·      Balance Sheet

-  Total assets of N4.945trn (31 December 2019: N3.759trn) up 31.5%

-  Net loans and advances of N1.663trn (31 December 2019: N1.502trn) up 10.7%.

-  Restricted deposits and other assets which comprise largely of restricted deposits (i.e. Cash Reserve Requirement and AGSMEIS) with Central Banks increased by 112.4% to N1.226trn in December 2020 from N577.4bn in December 2019.  

-  Deposits from customers of N3.509trn (31 December 2019: N2.533trn) up 38.6%.

·      Credit Quality

-  Non-performing loans to total loans at 6.4%, 5.9% at Bank level (31 December 2019: 6.5%, 6.2% at Bank level).

-  Coverage for Lifetime Credit Impaired Loans at 128.7% (31 December 2019: 126.6%)

-  Cost of Risk at 1.2%, 1.0% at Bank level (31 December 2019: 0.3%, 0.2% at Bank level).

·      Continued focus on efficiency

-  Cost to income (CIR) of 38.2% (31 December 2019: 36.1%). Increase in CIR was influenced by rise in inflation rate and exchange rate translation which worsened relative to FY 2019.

·      Subsidiaries

-  Contribution to PBT from subsidiaries increased to 15.3% from 14.9% in December 2019.

December 2020 Financial Analysis and Ratios

*The Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) for December 2020 has been computed using June 2020 Capital in line with the CBN's directive. Upon certification of the December 31, 2020 closing capital, post year end by CBN, CAR will close at 25.9%.

18 March 2021

Enquiries:

Notes to the Editors:

Guaranty Trust Bank is a diversified financial services company with N4.945trillion in assets, providing commercial banking services through 232 local branches, 30 e-branches & Cash Centres, 60 GTExpress locations, 1,366 ATMs, our 107 international subsidiary offices and the Internet (gtbank.com).

The Group operates as one of the leading Nigerian banks offering a wide range of commercial banking services and products throughout Nigeria, West and East African sub-regions as well as the United Kingdom. The Bank is rated B- and B by S&P and Fitch respectively, a reflection of the Bank's stability and reputation of being a well-established franchise with strong asset quality and consistent excellent financial performance.

The Bank has ten bank subsidiaries/sub-subsidiaries established outside of Nigeria -

1)   Guaranty Trust Bank (Gambia) Limited    ("GTB Gambia"),

2)   Guaranty Trust Bank (Sierra Leone) Limited ("GTB Sierra Leone"),

3)   Guaranty Trust Bank (Ghana) Limited      ("GTB Ghana"),

4)   Guaranty Trust Bank (Liberia) Limited     ("GTB Liberia"),

5)   Guaranty Trust Bank (United Kingdom) Limited ("GTB UK")

6)   Guaranty Trust Bank (Cote D'Ivoire)        ("GTB Cote D'Ivoire"),

7)   Guaranty Trust Bank (Kenya) Limited      ("GTB Kenya"),

8)   Guaranty Trust Bank (Rwanda) Limited    ("GTB Rwanda"),

9)   Guaranty Trust Bank (Uganda) Limited    ("GTB Uganda")

10) Guaranty Trust Bank (Tanzania) Limited  ("GTB Tanzania").