Fidelity to pay 22 kobo dividend

Shareholders of Fidelity Bank have endorsed the payment of 22 kobo dividend per share to those in the register of members at the close of business on April 16, 2021.

The shareholders gave the approval at the 33rd Annual General Meeting (AGM) held in Lagos. The dividend translates to a yield of 9.2 per cent, making it the fourth most rewarding bank to investors in the Nigerian capital market.

The shareholders at the event also lauded the management for the 38.7 per cent increase in customer deposits, which rose from N1.225tn in 2019 to N1.699tn.

The Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mustapha Chike-Obi, reassured the shareholders that the bank would maintain the high corporate governance standards and continue on its growth. The bank’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mrs Nneka OnyealiIkpe, said the bank’s financial performance for the period reflected the resilience of its business model in a challenging operating environment.

In the first quarter of 2021, she said local currency deposits grew by 49.6 per cent to N1.4tn and constituted 82.5 per cent of total customer deposits, while foreign currency deposits grew by 3.3 per cent to N298.2bn; which is 17.5 per cent of total deposits.

Total savings deposits increased by 54.2 per cent to N424.4bn, making it the eighth consecutive year of recording double-digit growth in savings deposits.

The bank began the year on a positive note as its Profit Before Tax (PBT) grew by 53.9 per cent from N6.6bn in the first three months of 2020 to N10.1bn in the first quarter of 2021.