ABSA BOTSWANA INTERIM PROFITS UP
Absa Botswana has announced that the company’s consolidated interim profit before tax for the period ended 30 June 2021, will be 100 - 130 percent higher, approximately P258 million to P296 million, than what was reported for the period ended 30 June 2020.
This difference amounts to P129 million.
Absa Botswana, which is led by Keabetswe Pheko Moshagane has further told shareholders that the full details on the financial results will be provided to the shareholders on 16 September 2021.
“Accordingly, the shareholders of the Company and potential investors are advised to exercise caution when trading in the Company’s securities until the results are formally published,” said the lender which is a subsidiary of Absa banking group.
Meanwhile, Absa group has reported strong performance for the same period. “Our first-half performance was better than expected,” says Jason Quinn, acting CEO. “It is particularly pleasing that our earnings are above preCovid-19 levels.
Also, our first-half normalised headline earnings per share is our highest ever, 4percent above the previous record in the first half of 2019.”
Absa grew normalised headline earnings five-fold to R8.6billion.
This was on the back of the growth in its retail and business banking division, which grew headline earnings by a hefty 811percent to R4.1-billion, largely thanks to growth in retail loans; and corporate and investment banking where headline earnings more than doubled to R4-billion, driven by growth in the global markets business and the investment bank.
This helped to offset the low credit appetite from corporate clients.
However, reporting at her first results presentation, Punki Modise, Absa’s group interim financial director, was quick to point out that the significant growth in earnings was supported by lower credit impairments.
“Credit impairments fell by two-thirds or R10-billion, as our credit loss ratio normalised after last year’s substantial charge,” she said. Absa recorded impairment charges of R4.7-billion, compared with R14.7-billion in the first half of 2020.