Bukola 
Wema Bank Plc has announced its unaudited finan – cials for the first quarter ending 31st March 2023, posting growth of 35. 04 per cent in gross earnings, which rose from N29.14 billion in Q1’22 to N39.35 billion in Q1’23. According to a press statement issued by the bank, interest Income went up 31.73 per cent y/y to N33.63 billion (Q1 2022: N25.53 bn) while non-Interest Income rose by 1.96 per cent y/y to N5.72 billion (Q1 2022: N5.61 bn).
The bank posted a profit before tax (PBT) of N6.21 billion, a y/y increase of 88.18 per cent over the N3.30 billion re – ported in Q1 2022. Profit after Tax (PAT) also increased y/y by 88.81 per cent to N5.40 billion (N2.86 bn in Q1 2022). Total deposits in the first quarter of the year had a slight decline by 0.44 per cent to N1,160.85 billion from N1,165.93 billion reported in FY 2022.
Loans and Advances rose by 0.47 per cent to N523.90 billion in Q1 2023 from N521.43 billion in FY’22. Commenting on the result, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of the bank, Mr. Moruf Oseni, said: “Our Q1’23 results shows the acceleration in our growth plan and our continued focus on delivering optimal returns to our investors as well as the impact of a talented workforce dedicated to delivering exceptional service to our customers.
We expect this growth to continue all through the 2023 financial year.” Also speaking on the result, the bank’s Chief Finance Officer, Mr. Tunde Mabawonku, explained that the bank’s continued focus on prudent asset creation and management as well as its deliberate emphasis on building a best-in-class digital play is yielding commendable results and will position it for industry leadership in the future.