Leadership (Abuja)
Amaka Ifeakandu
13 October 2008
Intercontinental Bank Plc has recorded gross earnings of N121 billion in its half year result ended August 31, 2008.
The bank's un-audited financial year report released last week, showed an increase of over 99 per cent as against the N60.9 billion achieved in the corresponding period of 2007.
The result which was made available to the Nigerian Stock Exchange further saw the bank's Profit Before Tax (PBT) soaring to N24 billion, an increase of 63 per cent from N14.7 billion in the previous year.
Financial analysts attributed the phenomenal growth in the bank's earnings portfolio to robust customer confidence. The bank's customer base has been upbeat due largely to aggressive drive for retail business.
The bank early last year embarked upon a strategic repositioning drive to dominate retail markets across the country, leveraging on its strong corporate finance business and massive market response to the bank's consistent delivery on its brand promises to make customers happy with excellent banking services.
The effective delivery of its business model introduced in 2006 to drive businesses across geographical and sectoral divergence of the banking public has also helped in growing the bank's earnings.
The Group Chief Executive, Dr. Erastus Akingbola said the exceptional performance represents a bold step in the bank's global strategy of benchmarking the best financial institution in the international arena while positioning to become the number one bank in Nigeria among top five in Africa and top 100 in the world by 2011.
According to Akingbola, the bank is confident of posting an improved performance at the end of the financial year in February 2009.
"We are poised to surpass this record. We are encouraged by our drive, vision and capacity to double, year on year, all the performance indicators of the bank. We intend to beat our record and we shall", he said.
Intercontinental Bank is one of Nigeria's strongest brands. Its robust brand equity has been acquired over 18 years and resonates with a reputation for excellent customer service, superb financial performance and track record of exceptionally high returns on investments since inception.
The bank has evolved into one of the largest and most diversified financial services institutions in Nigeria. It also boasts of having one of the largest branch network spread across the country, linked by cutting-edge IT infrastructure.
Currently, it has over 300 branches nation-wide. The bank's rapid growth transcends Nigeria's geographic confines.
The bank opened its first European office located in London last month. The opening marks the bank's continued international expansion that began in 2006 with opening of Intercontinental Bank Ghana Limited and is set to include every continent.
"The opening of Intercontinental Bank's London office - the first outside of the African continent- signals our continued commitment to emerging as one of the top 100 banks in the world," said Dr. Erastus Akingbola.
"Our London subsidiary will enable Nigerians, other nationals and organisations within and outside of the United Kingdom to execute seamless financial transactions in the UK ."The London location offers wholesale banking services in the UK , including trade services, businesses such as letters of credit, collections and guarantees, structuring and funding of structured trade, and project finance transactions, as well as arrangement of funding for group entities.
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