FCMB Group recorded a substantial 104.8 per cent growth in gross revenue during the first quarter, precisely from January to March 2024, rising to N179.1 billion from N87.4 billion in the same period last year.
This growth, according to the group, was driven by a 89.9% growth in interest income and a 150.9 per cent growth in non-interest income.
Additionally, customer confidence remained strong, with deposits rising by 63.2 per cent year-over-year, from N2trillion to N3.3 trillion at the end of March 2024.
It’s profit before tax rose by 192.6 per cent Year-on-Year to N31.3 billion compared to N10.7 billion in the same period in 2023, even as all of the Group’s business segments demonstrated significant growth, with Investment Banking leading at 228.1 per cent, Consumer Finance at 165.4 per cent, Banking Group at 157.2 per cent, and Investment Management at 74.3 per cent.
This impressive performance across all business segments, the group said, directly results from FCMB Group’s strategic initiatives, which align perfectly with its purpose of fostering inclusive and sustainable growth in the communities it serves.
The group chief executive of FCMB Group Plc, Ladi Balogun, expressed confidence that the growth trend will be sustained.
To him, “We continue to leverage our unique group structure to build a technology-driven ecosystem that fosters inclusive and sustainable growth in the communities we serve. This strategy is enabling us to deliver robust performance in spite of the challenging domestic and global environment. Barring unforeseen circumstances, we believe our growth trend will be sustained and accompanied by improving efficiencies arising from greater scale and ongoing digitisation.”
Despite the challenging business environment, the Group increased its contribution to economic growth by extending loans and advances to N2.2 trillion, an 85.4 per cent increase, Year-on-Year, from N1.2 trillion in the corresponding period of 2023.
Net interest income increased by 74.5 per cent, from N31.7 billion in the first quarter of 2023 to N55.4 billion in the first quarter of 2024. Total assets increased by 68.5 per cent, from N3.1 trillion to N5.2 trillion.
Assets Under Management (AUM) equally grew 35.0 per cent Year-on-Year, from N830 billion to N1.02 trillion at the end of March 2024. This highlights the Group’s investment management expertise and ability to create value for its clientele.
The agency banking business extended its network to over 165,000 agents, acquiring over 300,000 customers between January and March 2024. FCMB expanded its customer base to 12.8 million within the quarter.
FCMB Group, a financial services holding company headquartered in Lagos, Nigeria, and listed on the Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX), has strategic interests in companies serving over 12.8 million customers across five platforms – banking, consumer finance, investment management, investment banking, and financial technology.