The Infrastructure Bank Plc has recorded a profit before tax (PBT) of N875million in 2013 compared with N82 million achieved in 2012.

The Chairman of the bank, Alhaji Lamis Dikko, who made the disclosure at the bank’s 3rd Annual General Meeting (AGM) in Lagos on Thursday, said that the figure showed an increase of N793 million.

Dikko said the bank’s total expenses in 2013 stood at N757million as against N586 million recorded in 2012.

He attributed the growth to the bank’s strength of transaction advisory offering “one-off capital cost’’ and well managed operational cost.

According to him, the bank remained optimistic on the economic outlook with all the indicators projecting continuous growth trend of the past decade.

Dikko also said that Nigeria had continued to attract high level of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in spite of the nation’s security challenges.

He also said that the Federal Government’s reforms and investment in the energy, agriculture and manufacturing sectors were expected to lead to significant job creation in the country.

Dikko added that the reforms and investment would further drive high growth rate in industry and agriculture sectors of the economy.

He also said that the key enabler for the growth was the provision of improved and increased infrastructure.

Dikko said that the mandate to act as an advisor and fund arranger to the Federal Government showcased the bank’s potential in serving as a partner of choice for both the public and private sectors.

In his address, the Managing Director of the bank, Adekunle Oyinloye, said the bank’s profit impacted positively in its current earnings per share of 54 kobo in 2013 compared with 20 kobo recorded in 2012.

Oyinloye said that a key highlight of the year under review was the increased momentum in the transaction advisory and fund arranging business that represented tangible evidence of the bank’s competitive advantages.

He said the continued demand for infrastructure assets nationwide and the need for the delivery through alternative financing method offers project opportunities and supports the belief that the current trend was sustainable.

“The micro economy environment remains stable and promising.

“Inflation is at a single digit level and falling, while real GDP is projected to continue to grow at the rate of 7 per cent, driven largely buy agriculture, trade and services,“ he added.(NAN)