Union Bank of Nigeria Plc on Friday announced gross earnings of N118.4 billion for the financial year ended December 31, 2015.

This is contained in a statement issued by the bank and made available to journalists in Lagos.

According to the statement, this is against N109.8 billion declared in 2014, indicating an increase of eight per cent.

The bank’s profit before tax stood at ₦18.1 billion compared with ₦20.7 billion posted in the preceding period of 2014 including gain on sale of subsidiaries.

It stated that net interest income grew by six per cent to ₦53.8 billion against ₦50.6 billion in 2014, while asset yield stood at 16.4 per cent compared with 14.9 per cent in the previous year.

The statement stated that the bank’s expenses dropped by two per cent to N56 billion as against N57.2 billion recorded in 2014 in spite of continuous investments in people, technology and infrastructure.

It explained that the downward trend in expenses was achieved since 2012 from various cost transformation initiatives.

The statement added that customer deposits appreciated by 12 per cent from ₦507.4 billion to ₦569.1 billion in 2014, reflecting increased customer confidence, a re-energised brand and success of new products.

Commenting on the result, Emeka Emuwa, the bank’s Chief Executive Officer, said that 2015 was a challenging year across board with significant operational and economic headwinds.

Emuwa said that the bank maintained its focus on business and transformation initiatives which yielded desired results notwithstanding the difficult operating environment.

“With the launch of a re-energised brand identity and a retail model focused on customer needs, we increased our customer deposits by 12 per cent year-on-year,” he said. (NAN)