National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) has posted a net profit of BD19.74 million ($52.50 million) for the first quarter (Q1) of 2018 compared to BD14.74 million ($39.20 million) for Q1 of last year, marking a rise of 33.9 per cent.

National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) today announced strong financial results for the first quarter of 2018 reporting an 33.9 per cent rise in Net Profit to BD19.74 million ($52.50 million) compared to BD14.74 million ($39.20 million) for the corresponding period of 2017.

 Strengthened performance during the quarter was supported by higher net interest income linked to growth in loans and advances coupled with better asset liability management resulting in a strong improvement in the net interest margin, a statement said.

Provisions were also significantly lower than in the corresponding period for 2017, further contributing to the overall rise in net profits, it added.

The bank also posted an operating profit of BD20.11 million ($53.48 million) for the quarter, reflecting a year-on-year increase of 5.6 per cent.

Farouk Yousuf Khalil Almoayyed, chairman of NBB, said: “Contributing to the quarter’s success was the ongoing expansion of the business mix and greater penetration of the local economy. Prudent management and controls were also critical to increased profitability despite the planned increase in costs attributable to investments in human capital and technology to support the Bank’s modernisation, strengthening of its digital capabilities and efforts to drive ongoing growth both in Bahrain as well as regional markets where NBB is focused on leveraging and expanding its presence.”

Jean-Christophe Durand, chief executive officer of NBB, added: “We are proud of the strong performance and increased profitability delivered for the first quarter of 2018, which saw further diversification of our revenue streams and the expansion of our participation in the local economy, both key objectives for the Bank.

“We reported a significant rise of 5.6 per cent in Operating Profit for the period, driven largely by the healthy increase in loans and advances and resulting improvements in the Net Interest Income of 14.8 per cent. This is evidence of our success in refocusing the business and a positive sign of our increasing support for businesses across the Kingdom including SMEs, which are the engines of the economy and a priority for NBB.”
 
 “We also made important investments during the first three months of the year, which are critical for our sustained growth and diversification strategy,” Durand continued.

“This included the onboarding of a new Corporate Institutional and Investment Banking (CIIB) team, which significantly advances our ability to advise on and finance economic growth in the Kingdom, alongside new hires in retail and IT to support our digital transformation and focus on better meeting the needs of our customers and delivering value especially through new digital channels.

“While these investments have led to higher expected expenses during the quarter, they have not come at a cost to the bottom line. We remain focused on efficiency and cost management in order to maintain strong financial growth and continue to deliver enhanced profitability in the forthcoming periods,” he concluded. – TradeArabia News Service