By: Amadi Vincent Uzoma
The Bank of Industry (BoI) announced yesterday that it had distributed N496.72 billion in loans to 75,809 beneficiaries, covering large, medium, small, and micro enterprises in 2023.
During the bank’s 64th Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Abuja, Mallam Muhammed Bala, Chairman of the Shareholders Committee, revealed that the institution’s profits had reached N153 billion.
Bala highlighted the bank’s strong financial performance amidst global and local economic challenges, emphasizing a year of significant growth and success. He noted that these efforts had a considerable socio-economic impact, leading to the creation of around 2.20 million direct and indirect jobs nationwide.
The bank’s total assets saw a notable increase of 64.6% to N3.91 trillion from N2.37 trillion, demonstrating its commitment to strengthening its financial base and expanding its capacity to support Nigeria’s industrial sector.
Bala pointed out that this growth reflected positively on the bank’s performance, with Profit Before Tax (PBT) rising by 117.69% to a record N153.81 billion compared to N70.7 billion in 2022.
He mentioned that total loans and advances had significantly risen by 41.5% to N1.14 trillion and N803.6 billion respectively, mainly due to increased interventions and support for enterprises. This highlighted the bank’s ongoing efforts to provide crucial financial assistance to businesses across different sectors.
The bank’s total equity received a substantial boost, growing by 57.7% from N427 billion to N678 billion, strengthening its financial stability and readiness for future investments.
Discussing the projections for 2024, Bala stated, “Aligned with President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda and the National Development Plan (2021-2025), the Bank of Industry will continue to execute its medium-term corporate strategy for 2022-2024, focusing on sustaining support for Nigeria’s industrial development.”
In his statement, Dr. Olasupo Olusi, the Managing Director/Chief Executive of BoI, highlighted the bank’s contributions to economic recovery, job creation, and sustainable operation of Nigerian enterprises, especially micro and small businesses.
Olusi credited this success to various disbursement lines and managed intervention schemes such as the Smallholder Farmer Financing Product, MSME Distributor Finance Programme, Fintech/Digital Lending Product, Nigeria COVID-19 Action Recovery and Economic Stimulus (NG-CARES), and the Business Resilience Assistance for Value-Adding Enterprise (BRAVE).
He emphasized that BoI’s strategic focus on lending and investments in key sectors played a vital role in achieving these remarkable outcomes. Looking ahead, he stated, “The bank is committed to utilizing its financial strength to support Nigeria’s industrialization and economic growth.”
BoI stands as the oldest, largest, and most prosperous development financing institution in the country, aiding in the establishment of various projects across different scales and industries. Their goal is to drive the transformation of Nigeria’s industrial sector through financial and business support services.
