CAL Bank has assured its shareholders of sustained dividend payments in the years to come.
“CAL Bank remains committed to delivering superior returns to our valued shareholders.
The bank has always paid dividends ever since it was listed, and we assure you that we will continue to pay dividends in the coming years,” Board Chairman Paarock VanPercy said to applause from the shareholders.
Giving the assurance at the bank’s annual general meeting, which came off at the College of Physicians and Surgeons in Accra, he said CAL Bank is paying out a total of GH¢53.18million, a growth of 19.7percent on the 2014 figure of GH¢44.41million at GH¢0.097 per share.
The payable dividend represents 33 percent of profit after tax, the maximum payable per the bank’s dividend policy.
Analysts believe CAL Bank’s dividend promise is a step in the right direction, and underlines the bank’s credentials as one of the leading lights in the industry despite a gloomy economic environment.
The bank, by staying consistent with year-on-year performances, has delivered some improved results in the most critical indicators of growth despite intense competition.
Profit-after-tax, assets, commissions and fees, income, deposits, and loans and advances all saw growth.
The bank’s profit before tax increased from GH¢194.4million to GH¢213.2million while profit after tax increased by 14 percent.
Total assets of the bank increased by 23.8 percent to GH¢3.35billion.
Due to gains from an expanded branch network and deliberate deposit mobilisation efforts, customer deposits went up by 14.6 percent from GH¢1.34billion to GH¢1.81billion.
Another improved indicator is the bank’s non-performing loans ratio, which dropped from 6.2 percent in 2014 to 5.5 percent in 2015, reinforcing the quality of its assets.
“We maintained a continuous focus on enhancing the quality of relationship management, monitoring and recoveries to effectively manage the quality of our loan book.
This notwithstanding, specific challenged advances were adequately provided for and recovery measures put in place,” Frank Adu Jnr., the bank’s Managing Director, added.
The bank’s capital adequacy ratio remained relatively high at 20.6 percent arising out of Tier II funding and increased earnings in 2015, and it intends to leverage its strong capital position to sustain planned future development of the business.
Touching on future prospects of the bank, Mr. Adu stated that its objective is to transform the business to effectively compete and create superior returns in a sustainable manner.
“In furtherance of this aspiration, we are developing our internal resources as well as working with external reputable parties to develop new sources of revenue streams in the high-speed digital space we operate in.
“We have put measures in place to enhance the attractiveness of our financial solutions, improve the quality of our service and improve upon our productivity; this is underpinned by the investment in our human capital, modernisation of operations, as well as upgrading our technology,” he added.
Subsidiaries
Both CAL Brokers and CAL Asset Management Company remained profitable over the review period.
Profit after tax increased by 73.2 percent to GH¢3.1million and 77.5 percent to GH¢2.8million for CAL Brokers and CAL Asset Management respectively.
Funds under management by the Group increased to GH¢600.8million, up from GH¢298million from the previous year.
Frank Adu noted that the significant growth was achieved through broadening the clientele base of the asset management company, an increase in the funds under management of existing clients through a consistent delivery of customer service.
Source: B&FT Online