Market Leader, Zenith Bank Posts Another Impressive Result With N102Billion Profit

Internationally adjudged Best Bank In Africa, Zenith Bank has posted another impressive result. The marker leader just announced a profit before tax of N102 billion for the    just concluded financial year. This occurrence is labelled a 51 percent increase from the previous year's. Here is a full disclose of the development as made available to societynowng.com. ''Zenith Bank on Tuesday announced a profit before tax (PBT) of N102.10 billion for the financial year ended December 2012, up by 51.4 Per cent from the N67.44 billion recorded in 2011.
''Details of the group’s audited result announced on the floors of the Nigerian Stock Exchange showed that Profit after tax (PAT) for the period was N100.68 billion, which represents a 106.7 per cent jump from the N48.70 billion recorded in the corresponding period in 2011. ''The much expected result confirms the bank’s leadership position in the industry as it became the first to cross the N100 billion profit  after tax mark in a financial year. The result also showed the bank maintaining its leadership position on other parameters with total assets plus contingents of N2.60 trillion, representing a 12.7 per cent increase over the N2.30 billion recorded in 2011. ''In line with its tradition of creating more value for its shareholders, directors of the bank are proposing a dividend payout of N1.60 per share. Gross earnings, according to the results, rose by 25.88 per cent from N243.94 billion to N307.08 billion, indicating an increasing market share. The result also shows the bank’s commitment to prudent debt management yielding positive results as total non-performing credit facilities to total credit facilities stood at 3 per cent, a remarkable improvement over the 6 per cent recorded last year. ''The result was hailed by financial analysts and investors as an outstanding result, as it shows the ability of Zenith Bank to sustain its performance, raise the bar of competition and continually surpass the expectations of stakeholders Analysts were particularly impressed by the bank’s increasing profitability despite the prevailing economic realities, pointing out that the earning per share of 312 kobo was reassuring for a bank with a solid tradition of raising the bar. ''Zenith Bank, Nigeria’s largest bank by tier-1 capital and shareholder funds, recently listed $850 million worth of its shares on the London Stock Exchange at $6.80 each in a major step to improve liquidity in its stock through Global Depository Receipts. ''By its size, that $850 million GDR listing is the largest of any Nigerian bank on the LSE to date and is expected to help Zenith Bank, with a market capitalization of $4.24 billion, access to a wide range of major institutional investors and significantly raise its international profile. ''Zenith Bank, which has subsidiaries in the UK, Ghana, Sierra Leone, The Gambia and representative offices in South Africa and China and a customer base of over two million has in 23 years emerged a financial super powerhouse with its excellent performance on all parameters consistently attracting commendations at home and abroad. ''Last year, the bank was named the ‘Best Bank in Corporate Governance’ by World Finance and one of the ’20 Global Super Brands’ by FTSE Global Markets.''