No dividend for Republic Bank shareholders due to 2020 losses

Republic Bank Limited recorded losses after tax for 2020 with no surpluses for investor dividend.

“No dividend has been recommended by the Directors for approval by the Shareholders because of the negative Income surplus balance. The bank had some GHC14.5million outstanding settlements, ” according to the firm’s audited financial statement for 2020.

This was due to large expenses, and a freeze on loan repayment at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic in Ghana.

In a release issued Thursday, March 26, 2020, the bank said the offer also included a waiver on fees that customers would have paid.

Revenue of the bank increased by 13.3% to GHC 455million compared to 2019.

But profits after taxes and all other deductions were GHC51.6million, 17.5% short of what was attained in 2019.

Net interest dipped by 16.6% year-on-year to GHC 257 million, whilst net trading income also dropped by 9.1% year-on-year to GHC 20.3 million.

Consequently, shareholders would lose some money on the earnings per share, which dropped from 7.34pesewas to 6.06.

Both total assets and liabilities shrunk marginally.

The capital adequacy ratio, a measurement of a bank’s available capital expressed as a percentage of a bank’s risk-weighted credit exposures, dropped by 3% to 26.66%.

Non-performing loans shot up by almost 5% to 19.03 %, exceeding the industry average of approximately 15.5%.

The bank ended the year with a liquidity ratio of 166.36%.

The main identified challenges associated with the banks activities were credit, liquidity, operational and market risks.

The bank spent a total of GHC1.2 million in sponsorship of education and youth development, health and the support of the underprivileged in society, under its corporate social responsibility.

Company profile

Republic Bank (Ghana) Limited, formerly HFC Bank (Ghana) Limited, is a subsidiary of Republic Financial Holdings Limited (RFHL) of Trinidad & Tobago.

Republic Bank is a diversified universal banking institution in Ghana.

Its services include corporate, commercial and retail banking; investment banking; mortgage banking and microfinance.