Nedbank Eswatini Limited recorded a total income of E340.7 million.
This is an increase by 11% from the E307.8 million recorded in June last year.
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According to the green bank’s commentary on their financial performance for the period ended June 2024, loans and advances to customers grew by 10% to E4.4 billion.
Funding from customers’ deposits also went up by 5% to E5.3 billion in December last year where E5 billion was recorded.
The bank also recorded headline earnings of E63.2 million in the first six months of this year, which was a decline from E65.5 million recorded in June last year.
Growth in assets, largely driven by increased lending activity to clients and the availability of excess funding from client deposits, led to the bank recording net interest income (NII) of E223.3 million compared to the E207.2 million recorded in June last year, reflecting growth of 8%.
Adding, the report states that the impairment charge of loans and advances for the period rose to E57 million whereas it was E32.1 million in the previous year, driven by continued strain seen mainly in the small and medium enterprise (SME) and lower business banking portfolios.
This was coupled with the effects of expected credit loss (ECL) model updates on the SME portfolio as well as the implementation of a more robust write-off strategy for the year designed to clean out legacy exposures in the non-performing loans portfolio.
“Eswatini’s economic growth is expected to remain robust in the short to medium term. This growth will be supported by expansionary fiscal policy, accommodative monetary policy and an export-led national growth strategy leveraging favourable trade terms.
‘‘The Central Bank of Eswatini (CBE) has maintained a firm monetary policy stance in order to anchor inflation expectations and continues to focus on financial inclusion and sector stability through its support of key initiatives such as the National Payment Switch and Common Monetary Area (CMA) Real Time Gross Settlement with legislative backing.
‘‘The government is committed to an economic turnaround,” states the report.
Meanwhile, the non-interest revenue for the period recorded growth of 17% to E117.4 million compared to the E100.6 million recorded last year and the non-interest revenue to expenses ratio improved to 59% from 56%. The bank’s strategic intention was to prioritise the onboarding of customers onto secure world-class digital platforms which enable clients to enjoy a seamless banking experience.
The report further stated that operating expenses levels went up by 11% to E199.4 million from E180.4 million, and the efficiency ratio remained relatively flat at 59%.
“The bank’s capital adequacy ratio was 15.1% and in December 17.8% was recorded above the regulatory requirement of 8%. Capital and reserves totalled over E1 million and 1.15 million that was recorded in December. The bank’s capital adequacy ratio has been computed according to Basel II reporting principles as adopted by the CBE.
‘‘The board of directors is satisfied that the bank’s capital is adequate and meets regulatory requirements. Nedbank Eswatini’s focus for the rest of the year is on efforts to consistently deliver a superior client experience underpinned by service excellence and innovative banking solutions,’’ states the report.
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