BY KENNETH EZE AND WILLIAM ANAEBONAM
Five Deposit Money Banks in Nigeria spent over N94 billion on directors’ emoluments and personnel costs in the first three months of the year.
The banks include Access Bank Plc, FBN Holdings Plc, Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, United Bank for Africa Plc and Zenith Bank Plc.
Figures available on Zenith Bank’s Consolidated and Separate Interim Financial Statements for the period ended March 31, 2021, shows that the financial services group spent N406million on directors’ emoluments in the period, as against N350million in the same period of 2020.
The total personnel cost for the same period, for Zenith, stood at over N18.5bn, as against N18.1bn in the corresponding period of 2020.
In the case of FBN Holdings, the Unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements for the Period Ended March 31, 2021 shows that the group spent N690million as directors’ emoluments, up from the N634million expended in the corresponding period of 2020.
The total personnel expenses for the group, during the period under review stood at N24.9bn, slightly higher than the N24bn incurred for the same period of 2020.
“The figures, the accompanying notes to the interim financial statements explained, were made up of “wages and salaries,” as well as “defined contribution plans”
The Point also analysed the Q1, 2021 financial results of Access Bank, GTBank and UBA.
The three banks, unlike Zenith and FBN, did not separate the directors’ emoluments from other personnel expenses/operating expenses.
Access Bank’s total expenses on personnel, which the ‘Unaudited Consolidated and Separate Financial Statements for the Period Ended March 31, 2021,’ captured under ‘wages and salaries,’ stood slightly at above N20bn.
The figures, however, reportedly, also include “contributions to defined contribution plans,” and “restricted share plan,” among other cost elements.
This is slightly higher than the N19.6bn spent by the group on this cost element in the corresponding period of 2020.
In the case of GTBank, the ‘March 2021 Condensed Unaudited Group Financial Statements,’ shows that the group expended about N10bn on ‘personnel expenses,’ in the period, as against the sum of N9.2bn in the corresponding period of 2020.
The figures were reported to be inclusive of “wages and salaries”, which accounted for the bulk sum of N9.7bn and N9bn for Q1, 2021 and Q1, 2020, respectively.
Another cost element captured under the personnel expenses of the group was described as, ‘contributions to defined contribution plans.’
Similarly, UBA, in its group’s ‘Interim Consolidated Financial Statements for the Period Ended March 31, 2021,’ set out its human resources and related costs under the subhead, ‘Employee Benefits Expenses.’
The group’s EBE, stood at N21.3bn as against N22bn for Q1, 2021 and Q1, 2020, respectively, as stated in its interim financial report for the period.
The figures, the accompanying notes to the interim financial statements explained, were made up of “wages and salaries,” as well as “defined contribution plans.”
