Guaranty Trust Bank Plc has proposed an interim dividend of 30 kobo per share, which translates to N8.8bn, for the first half of the year.

In its half-year financial statement, which was made available to the Nigerian and London Stock Exchanges on Friday, the bank reported a 3.72 per cent growth in profit after tax, from N95.58bn in 2018 to N99.13bn in 2019.

The bank reported a profit before tax of N115.8bn, representing a growth of 5.6 per cent over the N109.6bn recorded in the corresponding period of 2018.

The bank’s loan book grew by one per cent from N1.26tn recorded as of December 2018 to N1.27tn in June 2019 while customer deposits increased by 6.3 per cent to N2.42tn from N2.27tn in December 2018.

The total assets of the bank stood at N3.60tn while shareholders’ fund stood at N603bn.

The Chief Executive Officer, GTB, Mr Segun Agbaje, while commenting on the financial results, said, “We have delivered a good result in spite of a challenging market, characterised by varying degrees of uncertainty and a rapidly changing competitive landscape.

“Our strong financial performance is underpinned by our unwavering focus on delivering value to our shareholders and reimagining the role we play in our customers’ lives.

“In a rapidly changing world and increasingly unpredictable environment, we are committed to building a long-term business that is both nimble and focused on flawless execution.”

Agbaje said the progress recorded by the bank over the past six months demonstrated that the bank had the right strategy and a dedicated team to deliver, even in difficult conditions.