Ecobank Group makes $1.2b revenue first nine months of 2012

Togo-based pan-African lender, Ecobank Group, has recorded in its first nine months of 2o12, revenue of $1.2 billion.

The $1.2 billion revenue represented an increase of 46% from the prior year period, the Group said in its unaudited results for the nine months which ended September 30, 2012.

The rise was “primarily due to the acquisition of Oceanic Bank,” it added.

The Group recorded $191 million profit before tax, up 8% from the prior year period while its basic earnings per share (EPS) was 0.90$ cents compared to 1.08$ cents in September 2011.

While the Bank’s customer deposits went up 47% from September 30, 2011 to $13.1 billion, Ecobank indicated that it gave customer loans of $8.6 billion, up 50% from September 30, 2011.

The Group’s operating expenses for the nine month period were $900 million, an increase of 65% compared to the prior year period. It explains that the jump in operating expenses were due largely to the addition of “Oceanic Bank’s cost base and higher depreciation and amortisation expenses from investments made in technology and fixed assets”.

However, improved cost management saw operating expenses remain flat on a quarter-on-quarter basis, Ecobank indicated.

Total assets amounted to $18.5 billion at September 30, 2012, up 55%, or $6.6 billion from the prior-year figure, as a result of the Oceanic acquisition and, to a lesser extent, 2012’s capital increases, it noted.

Commenting on the results, Thierry Tanoh, Ecobank Group CEO Designate said “Ecobank produced a solid performance across all of our businesses in the third quarter. A disciplined approach to cost control, coupled with the continued conservativism of our lending and risk management policies, combined to deliver a quarter-on-quarter improvement in profit before tax.”

Tanoh added “Both of our recent acquisitions, Oceanic Bank in Nigeria and The Trust Bank (TTB) in Ghana, are contributing positively to our performance.”

By Ekow Quandzie