FBN Holdings Plc announced yesterday that it gained 11 per cent to hit N8.51trillion in total assets as at September 30, 2021 from N7.69trillion reported in full year ended December 30, 2020.

Key drives were 25 per cent gain in Customer loans & advances (Net) to N2.77trillion as at September 30, 2021 from N2.22 trillion reported in 2020 full year results, and 11 per cent increase in Customer deposits to N5.42 trillion from N4.89trillion reported in 2020 full year results.

The Holdings, however, announced N40.79billion in profit after tax in its audited nine months ended September 30, 2021 result and accounts, a decline of 40.15per cent from N68.15billion reported in nine months of 2020.

The Holdings also reported 16.4 per cent decline in profit before tax to N52.9billion in nine months of 2021 from N63.31billion reported in nine months of 2020.

The decline in profits was compounded by the Holdings decline in gross earnings and growth in operating expenses.

From the profit & loss figures, FBN Holdings reported nearly three per cent drop in gross earnings to N427billion in nine months of 2021 from N439.3billion reported in nine months of 2020, while total operating expenses grew by 9.4 per cent to N229.5billion from N209.8billion reported in prior nine months.

The Group Managing Director< FBN Holdings, Mr. U.K. Eke in a statement said:“The FBN Holdings’ nine months performance reflects the events in the yield environment and the macroeconomic challenges.

“However, the Group has continued to drive revenue momentum from the increase in loan growth, to deepening the transaction-led banking model, evidenced by our continued growth in non-interest income, as well as improving the performance from the Merchant Banking and Asset Management business.

We have remained committed to our long-term strategic ambitions and are pleased with the progress made in driving stability in performance, and ensuring the Group is well positioned to grow through the current 2020 – 2024 strategic cycle.

The first nine months of this year have witnessed significant changes at FBN Holdings with the appointment of new Non-Executive Directors at FBN Holdings and FirstBank with a view to enhancing governance practices.

“These developments along with the realignment of the Group on steadier ground over the last few years pave the way for a successful and prosperous future.

“As previously announced, the Board of FBN Holdings at its meeting of October 27, 2021, accepted my voluntary retirement from the role of GMD from December 31, 2021.

“I will be handing over my duties to Mr. Nnamdi Okonkwo who has been appointed as the GMD designate and will officially take up his role from January 1, 2022.

“I am incredibly proud of the progress we have made over the last six years as we cleaned up the books and reorganised the entire risk management framework, leading to a significant decline in the NPL ratio from above 20 per cent to 7.3per cent.

He added that: “Over this period, we have also pushed our individual and collective innovativeness to new frontiers and developed a leading digital banking capability that will shape the future of our organisation.

“I am confident the Group will benefit from this progress and recapture its market leadership under the leadership of Mr. Okonkwo and the highly capable Executives across the entire Group.

“Finally, I would like to thank the Board, all employees and our various stakeholders for their support and trust over the course of my tenure. It has been my privilege to serve this great organisation and I look forward to seeing its continued progress.”