Sterling Bank Plc yesterday reported that its shareholders’ fund grew by 20.2 per cent in 2017, peaking at N102.9 billion up from the total value of N85.7 billion recorded in the preceding financial year.
This is just as the lender reported a profit after tax (PAT of N8.5 billion for the financial year as against the N5.2 billion posted in 2016, indicating an increase of 65 per cent. Similarly, the bank’s gross earnings rose by 19.8 per cent to N133.5 billion from N111.4 billion in the 2016 financial year.
These details were disclosed at the bank’s its 56th Annual General Meeting, AGM, in Lagos, where the Board restated the lender’s commitment to focus on key growth sectors of the economy to drive sustainable growth and deliver higher returns to shareholders.
The bank’s Chairman, Mr. Asue Ighodalo, told the shareholders that the business outlook presented an opportunity to navigate growth by innovative means.
Ighodalo explained that as a business, the bank would continue to focus on key growth sectors of the Nigerian economy and leverage its areas of strength to drive sustainable growth and deliver superior returns to esteemed shareholders.
He restated the bank’s commitment to delivering innovative solutions in line with the global Sustainable Development Goals and the Central Bank of Nigeria’s sustainable banking principle.
He assured the shareholders: “As a matter of necessity, we remain committed to delivering solutions that satisfy stakeholders’ needs and objectives while also providing adequate financial returns to shareholders.”
Ighodalo, who attributed the bank’s improved performance to shared purpose by all stakeholders, commended the immediate past management led by Mr. Yemi Adeola, who retired in April as managing director and chief executive of the bank and the board for their hard work, commitment and support.
In his address, the bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Abubakar Suleiman, promised that the management would continue to execute the plans to drive efficiency across the business under the three pillars of agility, digitisation and specialisation in the new financial year.
“These pillars will propel us towards sustainable growth by enhancing our ability to innovate; solidify our retail funding base; strengthen our enterprise-wide risk management framework and drive excellent service delivery across all channels to enhance customer experience”, Suleiman said.
The banker explained that the bank’s 2017 performance highlighted its underlying institutional strength, despite the inclement operating environment, adding that major investments in technology helped the bank to provide excellent services to customers, grow markets and create new ones more efficiently.
According to him, the bank is mobilising private sector capital to address some of the most pressing social and economic needs of Nigerians.
Suleiman said: “We have aligned the bank’s business model to offer financial and non-financial solutions to key areas which are at the HEART of Sterling Bank – Health, Education, Agriculture, Renewable Energy, and Transportation. We are driven by the conviction that these sectors are important catalysts for our country’s socio-economic growth and sustainable development.”
