dfcu records 21% growth in profitability positioning itself strongly to drive future growth

dfcu Limited has this Tuesday released its 2019 consolidated financial results revealing a strong position having recorded a 21% growth in profitability from UGX 60. 9bn in 2018 up to UGX 73.4bn in 2019. Despite the performance, a dividend payout will depend on the assessment of the full impact of the global COVID-19 pandemic on the operations of the business.

“The emergence of the COVID-19 global pandemic presents a lot of uncertainty in global economies and Uganda is no exception. Nevertheless, dfcu has consistently paid a healthy dividend over the years and will continue to do so in the future,” said Mr. Elly Karuhanga the Board Chairman, dfcu Limited, of which dfcu Bank is a subsidiary company.

Commenting on the effect of the pandemic dfcu Bank’s Chief Executive Officer, Mathias Katamba said: “We are cognizant of the ongoing global COVID-19 pandemic that may adversely impact the operating environment by majorly disrupting global supply chains, transport and travel. But with guidance and support from our Board, strong management team and dedicated staff, we remain focused on driving efficiency to harness institutional capabilities and growth.”

According to Mathias Katamba, the Banks profitability in 2019 was driven by increased efficiency and a reduction in operating costs. “We focused on cutting down our operating costs by 4% from 202 Billion Shillings in December 2018 to 193 Billion Shillings in December 2019, in addition to reducing our funding costs by 7% in terms of interest expenditure from 105 Billion Shillings to 97.6 Billion giving rise to a 4% growth in net operating income from 306 Billion Shillings in December 2018 to 319 Billion Shillings in December 2019. This effectively set the Bank on a solid footing to further harness institutional capabilities going forward,” he said.

2019 Performance Highlights

• Overall interest expense reduced by 7% from UGX 104.7 billion to UGX 97.8 billion showing improved efficiency in the liability mix as a result of management’s effort to shed off expensive funding and concentrate more on cheaper liabilities. Consequently, the net interest income increased by 3% from UGX 221.1 billion to UGX 227.4 billion.

• Non-funded income in terms of fees and commissions grew by 28% from UGX 51.2 billion to 65.4 billion as we continue to harness the benefits of the investments in technology and growth in the customer base.

• Operating expenses reduced by 4% from UGX 202.2 billion to UGX 193.1 billion showing improved operating efficiency. As a result, the cost to income ratio reduced from 66.2% in 2018 to 60.6% in 2019.

• Net profit after tax increased by 21% to UGX 73.4 Billion from UGX 60.9 billion. This was mainly driven by significant increase in efficiency and cost management. Loans and advances grew by 10% from UGX 1.3 trillion to UGX 1.5 trillion as a result of increased disbursements and focus on continuous monitoring of the asset quality for the entire portfolio. The increase in loans and advances was organic.

• The asset base increased by 1% from UGX 2.916 trillion to UGX 2,958 trillion, upheld by strong growth in loans and advances.

• The Group’s deposit base grew by 3% from UGX 1.9 trillion to UGX 2 trillion. The growth was as a result of both newly acquired and existing clients across the business segments. Management implemented a clear strategy of growing the liability base, as well as retention of the existing customer relations.

• Shareholders’ funds grew by 9% from UGX 521.5 billion to UGX 569.7 billion as result of increase in retained earnings.

Other Non-financial highlights

Deployed key digital solutions that were geared towards improving the all-round customer experience – and further enhancing the Bank’s capacity to be a digitally driven organisation in line with its strategic aspiration of becoming the next generation bank in Uganda.

a) Investment Club App which revolutionized the management and administration of group savings that had previously been a key bottleneck to their growth as highlighted by the members

b) Roll out the next generation intelligent ATMs that now make it possible for customers to do much more at the ATMs including instant deposits, transfers and payments.

Top 5 shareholders of dfcu Limited

Shareholder	Percentage
Arise B.V***	58.70%
Investment Fund for Developing Countries (IFU)	9.97%
National Social Security Fund	7.46%
Kimberlite Frontier Africa Master Fund	7.35%
SSB Russel Investment Company Plc Fund	1.93%

Arise B.V is a consortium of Norfinance, FMO and Rabo Development BV.

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