All business lines have delivered commendable results

Durrant Pate/Contributor

Scotia Group Jamaica has delivered a strong financial performance for its 2022 financial year with net income closing the year ended October 31, 2022 at J$11.7 billion.

This is an increase of J$3.0 billion or 35.2 per cent over the previous year. The group’s strong financial performance was anchored by growth across core business lines and is supported by prudent expense management framework.

In keeping with its commitment to deliver shareholder value, the board of directors approved a dividend of 35 cents per stock unit in respect of the fourth quarter, which is payable on January 20, 2023 to stockholders on record as at December 29, 2022.

Total revenues close on J$45.9 billion 

Total revenues excluding expected credit losses for the year ended October 31, 2022, grew by J$5.2 billion to J$45.9 billion reflecting an increase of 12.9 per cent over the previous year. This was primarily driven by growth in net interest income of J$5.9 billion stemming from higher interest earned on loan and investment portfolios.

Net fee and commission income for the year amounted to J$6.2 billion and showed an increase of J$88 million or 1.5 per cent given an increase in customer activities. Insurance revenues increased by J$402.9 million or 15.3 per cent to J$3.0 billion given higher transaction volumes stemming from further deepening of customer relationships.

Net gains on foreign currency activities and financial assets amounted to J$7.1 billion, reflecting a reduction of J$1.1 billion or 13.4 per cent. Other revenue decreased by J$72.3 million or 7.1 per cent.

Audrey Tugwell Henry, president and CEO of Scotia Group Jamaica, is pleased with the very strong performance, saying it “reflects the resilience of our organisation, exemplary execution of our customer-focused strategy, our investments in digital transformation as well as increased coordination across the business. All business lines have delivered commendable results as we continue to offer strong value to the market and support our customers as the economy rebounds.”

Excellent fourth quarter performance

Total loans increased by 14 per cent over prior year due to the hard work of our retail and corporate banking teams. Scotia’s Corporate and Commercial Banking segment had an excellent fourth quarter, which resulted in total commercial loans growing by seven per cent when compared to the previous year.

During the quarter, the group launched its eCom+ suite of e-commerce solutions, which has been well received by both small and large enterprises as more companies enhance their online channels to satisfy customer demand. The flagship Scotia Plan Loan portfolio grew by 17 per cent over last year.

This was driven by our strong service delivery including increased product fulfillment via our digital channels as well as attractive product offerings and a renewed demand for our retail lending products. Tugwell Henry commended the performance in mortgages, which resulted in significant growth in mortgages throughout the year.

Insurance segment performed well

At the end of the fiscal year, Scotia’s mortgage business recorded 28 per cent growth over the prior year. As for its insurance business, Scotia Insurance continues to assist customers with high-value protection solutions. Gross written premiums were up eight per cent year over year, driven by heightened creditor protection and insurance planning advice and solutions.

During the quarter, Scotia Insurance piloted its Solace policy, an affordable policy for anyone aged 18 – 70 with no medical exam required, which will help many more customers to access life insurance, which remains an important area of focus for the group. Scotia Investments also made strong contributions to the group’s performance throughout the year.

Scotia’s Corporate Advisory team continues to support clients’ need for financing options with tailored capital solutions, which included a $1-billion debt restructuring for T Geddes Grant in September. Last month, Scotia enhanced its online capabilities by giving customers the ability to view their entire investment portfolio via our mobile banking app. Customer Experience remains a critical area of our business and we extensively increased our Customer Experience unit to focus on improving our processes and addressing customer concerns.

Improvement in handling customer complaints

The banking group has simplified and streamlined its complaint handling and dispute resolution process in the past year and are already seeing improvements in this area. There has been a marked reduction in overall resolution turnaround times, number of cases reported as well as significant improvement in our customer feedback metrics.

Online and electronic channels

Leveraging digital technology underpins the group’s Customer First Strategy with the provisioning of continuous investments in this area, as customers have signaled their preference for online and electronic channels. Online transactions increased by 50 per cent year over year with digital transactions now representing the largest category and accounted for 39 per cent of total transactions.

In September, Scotia launched its new online banking platform, which offers increased fraud monitoring and protection for retail banking customers. The banking group’s advancements in digital transformation were acknowledged by Global Finance Magazine, which named Scotiabank Jamaica as the Best Consumer Digital Bank for 2022.