Afreximbank records $519.8m revenue in H1

The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) recently released its unaudited financial statements for the six months ended June 30, 2020, indicating that total revenues grew by 4.4 per cent to $519.8 million.
The bank in a statement said fees and commission income supported the growth in revenues, reflecting continuing progress towards achieving its goal of diversifying revenue sources. Total assets increased by 34 per cent from $14.44 billion as at December 31, 2019 to $19.35 billion as at June 30, 2020, largely driven by a 26 per cent increase in loans to $15.20 billion and a 76 per cent increase in cash and cash equivalents to $3.91 billion. The high liquidity level was in response to the uncertainties caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Despite the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on socio-economic conditions globally, the bank saw its net income rise by 10 per cent from $137.63 million in June 2019 to $150.75 million in June 2020, mainly as a result of strong growth in net fee and commission income, which rose by 134 per cent.
Net interest income for the period grew by 17 per cent to $285.71 million (2019: US$243.93 million). The net interest margin improved from 3.3 per cent to 3.7 per cent, driven by lower costs of funds as interest rates declined globally.