
Unity Bank Plc, a prominent retail lender, has underscored its commitment to recapitalization amidst the prevailing challenges in the financial system, particularly the foreign exchange revaluation.
Addressing the bank’s financial performance for the first half of the year, the Managing Director/CEO, Tomi Somefun, acknowledged the significant disruptions in the operating environment, which have affected the bank’s positions.
Somefun highlighted the impact of income generation constraints due to the revaluation of the bank’s net foreign liabilities resulting from Naira devaluation during the period. Despite this, she expressed optimism in the positive economic outcomes of government policies in the near term.
She further noted a considerable improvement in negative shareholders’ funds, attributed to an injection of N135 billion. This injection moderated the negative shareholders’ fund from (-ve) N275 billion in December 2022 to (-ve) N178 billion as of June 2023, following the absorption of FX revaluation losses in Q2/2023.
Unity Bank Plc is steadfast in its plans to finalize its recapitalization program promptly, aiming to align with business expectations in Nigeria’s fast-growing markets.
The bank’s strategy includes accelerating asset creation and liability generation in the short and medium terms, driving retail growth across market segments, expanding strategic partnerships, and growing commercial banking business to develop new income lines sustainably.
Additionally, the bank emphasizes fast-paced process automation, cost and resource efficiency, targeted value chain relationships, and product marketing to enhance value creation in the market.
Despite reporting a net loss of N38.9 billion for the first six months of the year, compared to a net profit of N1.7 billion a year ago, Unity Bank Plc witnessed marginal deposit growth to N333.38 billion. This growth reflects the lender’s commitment to expanding its retail footprint and offering a diversified banking product suite.
Other highlights from the bank’s unaudited financial statement include a moderate NPL ratio below 3%, strong liquidity ratio exceeding 45%, and growth in fees and income commission by 10% to N3.5 billion. These achievements are credited to the bank’s digital banking platforms and customer acquisition strategies in the retail space.
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