GTCO's profit dips by 2.3% in H1 2022

Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) has declared a decline of 2.3 per cent in its Profit After Tax (PAT) to N77.6 billion in the first half of 2022, which ended June 31st.

The lender in its financial results Pre-tax profit was up by 11 per cent at N103.2 billion, but a steep surge in the cash spent on income tax meant after-tax profit declined 2.3 per cent to N77.6 billion.

GTCO, more than half of whose revenue and profit was contributed by its corporate banking business, recorded gross earnings of N239.3 billion.

Fee and commission income, summing up to N38.3 billion a year earlier, rose to N46.5 billion.

GTCO, which attained a holding company status last year, counts Stanbic Nominee, a subsidiary of rival Stanbic IBTC Holdings, as its biggest shareholder.

The latter holds a 19.9 per cent stake in the corporation in a custodial capacity on behalf of various investors and does not have personal voting rights on the shares.

Net trading gains on financial instruments – like bonds, treasury bills and foreign exchange – enlarged by a third to stand at N23.6 billion.

The financial services group committed N25.7 billion to settle its income tax bill, nearly doubling what it spent on that a year ago, about one-third of that going to deferred tax.

Other operating expenses were a major pressure point for revenue, gulping N63.6 billion in contrast to the N54.3 billion reported in the same period of last year.

All the fifteen components of this expenditure category but directors’ emoluments saw an uptick. the net profit margin stood at 32.4 per cent.

GTCO received approval from the Central Bank of Nigeria in June for its wholly owned payments unit, HabariPay.