Bahrain Middle East Bank saw income from new business initiatives grow by nearly two-fold to reach $5.7 million last year compared to $3 million in 2010.

Operating costs continued to show consistent efficiency improvements, amounting to $6.3 million compared to $7.6 million in 2010, representing a 17 per cent decrease.

The net profits for the period amounted to $3.7 million from $6.4 million last time, the bank said.

The Bahrain bank said its capital adequacy in 2011 continued to remain among the highest in the Kingdom at 25.1 per cent compared to 21.1 per cent the year before.

The leverage measured by total financial obligations to equity reduced to 1.0 x from 1. 6 x at end-2010 and 3.4 x at end-2009, it added.

Commenting on the results, chairman Wilson Benjamin said, 'We are very pleased with the results the bank has achieved amidst heightened uncertainty that continued to characterise global financial markets in 2011.'

'The bank's capacity to consistently deliver despite challenges remains testament to the success of its new initiatives and depth and diversity of its new business model,' he added.

'Despite the bank's limited resources, it gives us a good level of satisfaction that the new business initiatives have been successfully implemented, albeit on a small scale during 2011. It not only made a key contribution to the bank's overall performance but also had a profound impact on the bank's business model,' chief executive Akbar Habib said.

'This demonstrates that the model is not only viable but also resilient in view of its successful implementation during the period of unfavourable regional and international market conditions.

'These positive and encouraging developments provide us with a great degree of confidence and optimism that the business model is sound and fundamentally well positioned to take the bank to new heights in 2012 and beyond,' he added.-TradeArabia News Service