Key Highlights
- The pan-African banking group is positioned to leverage the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) to facilitate payments across Africa.
- ETI is working on tapping value from the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA).
- The CEO, of NGX, Mr. Temi Popoola commended ETI for its focus on Small and Medium Enterprise banking.
Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) has revealed that it seeks to play a major role in driving Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), Fintech, and market development growths in Africa.
The new Group Chief Executive Officer, ETI, Mr. Jeremy Awori stated this Tuesday while on a courtesy visit to Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) in Lagos for Closing Gong Ceremony.
AfCFTA
Awori stated that the pan-African banking group is positioned to leverage the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA) to facilitate payments across Africa, as the bank’s platform could be scaled to accommodate other African countries under the AfCFTA based on their respective regulations.
Awori further explained that Nigeria, being the largest economy in the African region was a core market for SMEs.
“As a pan-African bank, we are working on tapping value from the African Continental Free Trade Area Agreement (AfCFTA). We will continue to create more value in the country amidst the developments in technology, payments, and SMEs.” Awori added.
Partnership
Commending NGX for its leadership role and innovations including the NGX Technology Board, Exchange Traded Funds market development, and sustainability drive, the GCEO stated that ETI would actively work with the Exchange on developmental initiatives.
- “We will be building up our corporate and SME banking businesses as we are focused on growth transformation and maximizing value for shareholders and investors.”
- He said the financial institution quoted on the floor of the NGX remained determined to deliver value to shareholders and market stakeholders.
- “As a listed company on the NGX, we must continue delivering value to our shareholders, while remaining accountable to stakeholders. We are excited about the growth opportunities in Nigeria.
- “We have the largest pan-African footprint across 35 countries in Africa and are uniquely positioned to seize these growth opportunities for the benefit of our customers and clients. Furthermore, we recognize that responding to the evolving needs of Nigerian customers and clients is critical to delivering our pan-African strategy.
- “We are therefore determined to double down our efforts to support the growth of Ecobank Nigeria, which is a core business for the Ecobank Group”.
- “Ensuring we bring the market and the entire investment community to a clear understanding of our strategy and progress, as well as ultimately delivering returns to shareholders is fundamental for the market to reward us with a stock price that reflects Ecobank’s intrinsic value,” he said.
The Chairman of Ecobank Nigeria, Bola Adesola stated that the Nigerian franchise of ETI remains a key core market to the Group, as she further expressed optimism over Ecobank Nigeria’s position to drive earnings and contribute significantly to Nigeria’s market.
- “The Nigerian franchise remains a key market to the group. The thrust of what we do is to try to increase our contribution to the group’s earnings. We are very well positioned to contribute to Nigeria’s market,” she said.
Focus on SMEs
The CEO, of NGX, Mr. Temi Popoola commended ETI for its focus on Small and Medium Enterprise banking.
- “This aligns with our goal at NGX to do more for SMEs as we believe they are the engine of economic growth.
- “This has led to a few of our partnerships including the Memorandum of Understanding with the Bank of Industry (BoI). I also want to commend ETI for its work on sustainability and for playing an important leadership role in setting an example for the market,” he said.
The CEO stated that the Exchange had notable plans for sustainability, especially around carbon emissions reduction, and was exploring partnerships with organizations like ETI to move the capital market further on the path to Net-Zero.
What you should know
Ecobank Transnational Incorporated’s (ETI) profit before tax rose to a 5-year-high of N230.55 billion ($540.029 million) in FY 2022, according to audited financial statements seen by Nairametrics.
The banking group’s operating income also grew by 10.50% N794.860 billion ($1.862) billion in 2022; the highest in five years. The last time the Group had a higher figure ($1.972 billion) was in 2016.
Conversely, its operating expenses marginally grew by 5.85% on-year to N448.441 billion. This indicates that the bank was somehow able to show discipline around cost management. This is evident in its cost-to-income ratio of 56.4%, the lowest in 6 years and also below its 2022 guidance (57%-59%).
