FBN Holdings Plc, the parent company of First Bank of Nigeria Limited, has issued its financial statements for the six months ended June 30, 2019, posting a mix grill during the period.
The result, shared on the Nigerian Stock Exchange on Tuesday, July 30, 2019, showed that profit after tax dropped by 5.4 percent to N31.7 billion, compared to N33.5 billion in the corresponding period of 2018.
However, profit before tax made a gain of 2.6 percent to N39.9 billion during the period as against N38.9 billion in the same period of last year.
A further breakdown showed that gross earnings recorded a growth of 0.3 percent to N294.2 billion in the six months ending of this year, while the figure stood at N293.3 billion in the corresponding period of 2018.
Commenting on the results, Group Managing Director, FBN Holdings Plc, Elder Ukeh K Eke said: “Despite the difficult operating environment, we remain resolute in delivering on our guidance across key metrics, including our commitment towards a single digit Non Performing Loans (NPL) ratio by the end of year, as evidenced by the reduction in NPLs from the last quarter.
“Essentially, Atlantic Energy, our largest NPL, was written off, translating into a decline in the NPL ratio from 25.9 percent in December 2018 to 14.5 percent as at June 2019, a step that brings us closer to our full year 2019 target and create more headroom for quality asset growth.”
