Shareholders of the Nigerian Police Force Microfinance Bank have approved the total dividend payout of N45.7m for the financial year ended December 31, 2011 proposed by the Board of Directors of the bank.

The dividend, which was approved at the bank’s 18th Annual General Meeting of the bank recently in Lagos, amounts to two kobo per 50k share.

According to the result presented by the bank, the loan portfolio of the bank grew by 36 per cent to N3.94bn in 2011, from N2.89bn in 2010.

The bank’s total client base increased to 80,484 in 2011 from 68,408 in 2010, while the number of active borrowers stood at 20,018 at the end of 2011.

Similarly, the bank’s total assets improved marginally from N6.43bn in December 31, 2010 to N6.65bn in December 31, 2011, representing a 3.28 per cent growth.

The Chairman, NPF Microfinance Bank, Mrs. Florence Adebanjo, said the assets were utilised in recording a 39.27 per cent growth in performance as total income increased from N878.04m in year 2010 to N1.22bn in the year under review.

Adebanjo said the bank had continued to responsibly grow its lending in spite of the highly competitive financial terrain and testing operating environment.

“However, due to increased depreciation and operating cost from N630.37m in 2010 to N730.15m in 2011 as well as provisioning made on investment from a write back of N40.78m in 2010 to a provision of N234.01m, the profit before tax reduced by 19 per cent from N242.18m in year 2010 to N195.74m in the period under review,”

Source: Punch