ABG records $81 million net income in H1, 2016

Manama : The Bahrain-based Al Baraka Banking Group (ABG) yesterday announced financial results for the first half of 2016 reporting a 7 per cent increase in total operating income and a 4pc rise in net profits before tax and provisions from the same period a year ago. 

ABG’s total operating income for the period was US$538 million, up 7pc, compared to US$502m during the same period of 2015. Net operating income rose by 4pc from US$228m to US$236m during the same period, despite a 10pc increase in operating expenses owing to branch network expansion. 

Excluding taxes, which rose compared with last year due to some recoveries relating to past periods which were not repeated this year, as well as provisions, the group achieved net income attributable to equity holders of the parent of US$81m,which was lower than the profit achieved in 2015 of US$85m by 3.9pc. Total net income was US$143m, down by 4.9pc from the first half of 2015. 

For the second quarter of 2016, net profit attributable to equity holders of the parent amounted to US$44m, a decrease of 2.8pc from the prior year quarter, which amounted to US$45m. Net operating income amounted to US$122m and the total operating income reached US$263m.

Customer accounts as at the end of June 2016 increased compared to December 2015’s level by 1pc and reached US$ 20.4 billion. Total equity reached around US$2.1bn at the end of June 2016. Capital adequacy ratio reached 14.02pc at the end of March 2016.

With regard to the Group’s plans to expand its branch network, the President & Chief Executive Adnan Ahmed Yousif said, “We opened 24 new branches in the first half  of 2016 to bring total branches to 611 branches with total staff of 11,642.” He also added that after obtaining the official approval to establish a banking unit in Morocco, the group is  working now to complete the establishment procedures, and hope to launch it soon. 

Looking ahead, Adnan Ahmed Yousif said the bank expects fluctuations in regional and international markets to continue for the remaining part of 2016.