By Maduka Nweke, [email protected]
Purple Real Estate Group, one of the companies dominating the country’s property development space recently presented its audited results for the financial year ended December 31, 2021. In the results made available to Daily Sun, the Company’s total operating income increased 112 per cent to N2 billion due to expansion of asset base that includes sales of properties.
Purple is Nigeria’s breakthrough real estate and financial services platform at the forefront of a real estate revolution. The Company invests in the development, management and acquisition of superior multi-purpose properties and infrastructure across a wide range of sectors to democratise access to real estate ownership and investment, breaking down the barriers that prevent investors from the gains of appreciating assets.
Purple Real Estate Income Limited commenced operations in 2014 and is responsible for developing the Maryland Mall, a grade-A mixed-use centre that boasts of the largest outdoor LED screen in West Africa.
The Company’s income from the flagship Maryland Mall rose 46 per cent to N1.18 billion as a result of retail market stabilisation post COVID–19 lockdown and increased occupancy. It’s revenue from sale of trading properties of N1.35 billion, with the emergence of Purple Nano project now sold out.
It’s profit before taxation (PBT) also increased 181 per cent to N1.5 billion, while profit after tax (PAT) grew 168 per cent to N1.3 billion. The total assets grew by 60 per cent to N26.4 billion, while annual dividend grew by around 4984 per cent to N442.3 million.
According to Laide Agboola, Purple CEO, “2021 has been an important year in our journey and we have made significant progress across all our strategic priorities, despite the challenges that the on-going economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continued to present.
Our flagship location, the Maryland Mall, has supported growth in our operating revenue, delivering double digit increases in rental, service, and other revenue lines. This has been supported by very strong sales of our Purple Nano residences at the PurpleLekki mixed use project, where retail lettings are also performing well, with 90 per cent committed a year before anticipated opening. Together, this has driven growth in our operating income of 112 per cent, to N2 billion and growth in Profit Before Taxation of 181 per cent, to more than N1.5 billion, enabling us to return money to shareholders through a dividend of N442.3 million.
Our project development pipeline advanced significantly in 2021, with more than 600 homes now planned. We secured the site for our Purple Macro project, while our Purple Urban project began foundation work in late 2021 and is targeting a first phase of 110 units. Our entry into the affordable student housing segment also gathered pace, as we have identified campuses in a number of locations and are targeting 1,500 bed spaces as we roll out.
We have also made very encouraging progress in our emerging financial services and technology segment, with the completion of a key acquisition, which enables us activate our regulated asset management capabilities. We know that participation in the real estate market can have a high cost of entry and we are building a suite of exciting property technology solutions that will give our consumers the ability to invest in real estate assets at affordable price points. We look forward to the launch of these products in 2022, and to furthering our ambitions to democratise access to Nigeria’s burgeoning real estate market.”
