Afreximbank Q1 net interest income grows 31.73% to $393.4m

Omeiza Bilal

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has released the consolidated financial statements of the Bank and its subsidiaries for the three months ended 31 March 2024.

The Group’s result for the period demonstrates yet again great resilience in the face of challenging geopolitical and macro-economic conditions. The results show year-on-year growth and an increase in shareholder value.

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) is a Pan-African multilateral financial institution mandated to finance and promote intra-and extra-African trade. For 30 years, the Bank has been deploying innovative structures to deliver financing solutions that support the transformation of the structure of Africa’s trade, accelerating industrialization and intra-regional trade, thereby boosting economic expansion in Africa.

Net interest income for Q1 2024 grew by 31.73% to $393.4 million, compared to $298.6 million for the prior year’s comparative period (Q1 2023). The increase was largely driven by a 40.07% increase in interest income to $721.8 million, on the back of the growth in the Bank’s portfolio of loans and advances. Net interest margin improved to 4.82% compared to 4.40% in the corresponding period due to a combination of higher benchmark rates and effective management of borrowing costs.

The Group demonstrated an improvement in operating efficiency with a lower cost to income ratio of 14.50% in Q1’2024, compared to 16.82% in Q1’2023. This was achieved despite a 10.63% increase in operating expenses to $61.4 million. Staff costs rose by 28.55% year-on-year following an increase in staff headcount to support the growth of group business and other initiatives, in line with the Bank’s sixth strategic plan, constituting 52.93% of Group’s expenses.

Group total assets closed 1Q’2024 at $ 32.8 billion compared to $33.5 billion as at 31 December 2023.

Cash and cash equivalents closed the period at $4.9 billion compared to $5.6 billion in 2023 with the Liquidity ratio remaining strong at 14.9%.

The Group’s shareholders’ funds rose by 2.89% to $6.3 billion as of 31 March 2024 compared to $6.1 billion in 2023 on the back of growth in group net income of $178.7 million. Callable capital, a significant proportion of which was credit enhanced as part of the Bank’s Capital Management Strategy was maintained at $3.7 billion as of 31 March 2024 compared to $3.7 billion in 2023.

Afreximbank’s Senior Executive Vice President, Mr. Denys Denya, stated that “During the first quarter of the financial year 2024, Afreximbank Group delivered a strong performance even as we expanded our subsidiary companies’ operations and our activities in the Caribbean. Looking ahead, we will continue to prioritise revenue and quality assets growth, operational efficiency, while ensuring capital adequacy and adequate liquidity levels are maintained. Focusing on these key areas will enhance the Group’s ability to execute its strategy and initiatives as outlined in its Sixth Strategic Plan.”

“The implementation of the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) strongly supported by a robust payments and settlement system like PAPSS, is poised to strengthen the continent’s economic resilience by providing a shield against volatility on the international scene. Consequently, Africa is projected to sustain its resilience in 2024 and attain a growth rate of approximately 4 percent. We look forward to the rest of the year with confidence,” he added.