Accion MFB grows by 22.7%, to introduce ATM cards
By Amaka Abayomi
The chairman of Accion Microfinance Bank, Mr. Patrick Akinwutan, has said that the profit after tax of the bank grew by 22.7 per cent to N93,123,000 in 2010 from N75,919,000 in 2009, while the active loan portfolio went up by 28 per cent from N850 million in 2009 to N1,091 billion in 2010.
Speaking at the bank’s AGM, Akinwutan said despite the unfavourable operating environment that microfinance banks (MFBs) have to operate in, Accion MFB recorded significant progress in all key indices.
“Öur Profit After Tax rose by 22.7 per cent to N93,123,000 in 2010 from N75,919,000 in 2009, while savings deposits equally grew by 45 per cent from N204 million in 2009 to N295 million in 2010.
“The number of active savers and active borrowers grew by 45 per cent and 19 per cent respectively to 47,071 active savers and 9,473 active borrowers at the end of 2010. In our 4 years of operation, Accion MFB has successfully disbursed over N6.5 billion, closing 2010 with an active loan portfolio of N1,091 billion, a 28 per cent increase of N850 million in 2009.”
Akinwutan pointed out that Accion MFB would continue to focus on good corporate gover-nance in all its processes while strengthening its internal control processes, including human resources capacity.
Saying that the bank’s outlook for 2011 is growth based, the Managing Director of Accion MFB, Mrs. Bunmi Lawson, said Accion MFB would take advantage of the huge demand for microfinance products and services they offer and consolidate its growth and presence.
“This includes setting up three new branches every year, and we would soon open shop in Surulere and Agege, while our existing business units would be upgraded.
“Our performance in the past year has been encouraging as we witnessed growth in loan customers, interest, income and net profit, as well as a reduction in our Performance At Risk from PAR30>9.8 per cent as at May 2010 to PAR30>5.3 per cent as at May 2011.
“We would also employ technology to improve service delivery and ensure that customers benefit from the current global move to electronic and mobile financial services and payments.
“Leveraging on these alternative electronic channels would ensure that our customers have easier access to good and quality financial services through payment solutions, POS services, ATMs and cards.”