Wema Bank's share price rises by 441.7%

• Published date: 17 January 2023
• Publication title: Nigeria - The Nation

Wema Bank's share price rose by 441.7 per cent in 2022.

A report by Nairametrics indicated that Wema Bank's share price appreciated by 441.7 per cent. This helped it to close the 2022 year at N3.99, from the 72 kobp recorded at the end of 2021. The bank recorded 51 per cent increase in gross earnings in the first nine months of 2022 and a 31 per cent increase in post-tax profit. Investors rallied around the bank's stocks despite a general downturn in most banking stocks during the year.

Similarly, Wema Bank declared a final dividend of 24 kobo per ordinary share to its shareholders in 2021.

This fuels speculation that increased profitability in 2022 could suggest a better dividend payout to shareholders. The Nigerian equity market rallied by 19.98 per cent in 2022, higher than the 6.07 per cent recorded in the previous year.

After many years of dividend freezes, the bank has resumed dividend payments to shareholders in the last three years. Wema has modernized its processes and has increasingly leveraged digital technologies to serve its customers, boosting efficiency and productivity in the process.

Additionally, the bank enjoyed a profitable year in terms of its financial performance and equity performance. Nairametrics ranked the bank as the best-performing commercial bank in the first half of 2022 based on metrics from its financial statements. Wema Bank also won the 'Highest Dividend Yield' award at the Pearl Awards in 2022.

Meanwhile, Wema Bank Plc has called for more support for Fintech companies so Nigeria, like her peers, could optimally benefit from the possibilities that the Fintech industry offers. The bank made this call at The Fintech Summit (TFS) 2022 by Techpoint, which recently held in Lagos.

Speaking at the summit, the bank's Head of Data and Analytics, Olamide Jolaoso, said that the country needs many Fintech companies to come on board to meet the wide spectrum of Nigerians' Fintech needs.

'Some people are of the view...