NBB posts 14% rise in H1 profit

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune - www.newsofbahrain.com   

National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) has reported a 4% increase in net profit attributable to shareholders reaching BHD 19.1 million (USD 50.7 m) for the second quarter ended 30 June 2024, compared to BHD 18.4 m (USD 48.8 m) in the same period of 2023.

The increase is mainly driven by balance sheet growth and, higher gains from investment securities and treasury activities. Earnings per share at 8 fils (USD 2 cents) is in line with the same period in 2023.

Total comprehensive income attributable to NBB’s shareholders decreased by 29% to BHD 19.4 m (USD 51.5 m) compared to BHD 27.4 m (USD 72.7 m) in 2023.

The decrease is attributable to the negative mark-to-market movements of the equity and bond portfolios.

Year-to-date

NBB has reported a 14% increase in its net profit attributable to the shareholders for the six months ended 30 June 2024, recording BHD 46.6 m (USD 123.6 m) compared to BHD 40.8 m (USD 108.2 m) for the same period of 2023.

The increase in net profit is mainly due to higher net interest income driven by a stronger average balance sheet compared to the first half of 2023, and higher gains from investment securities and treasury activities.

Earnings per share increased to 21 fils (USD 6 cents) for the period compared with 18 fils (USD 5 cents) for the same period in 2023.

Total comprehensive income attributable to NBB’s shareholders for the period increased by 20% to BHD 51.4 m (USD 136.3 m) compared with 42.8 million (USD 113.5 m) in 2023.

The increase is mainly attributable to the positive mark-to-market movements of the equity portfolio and to a higher consolidated net profit.

Interim dividends

Following the Group’s strong performance, the Board of Directors proposed an interim cash dividend of BHD 22.7 million, which represents a 10% per share dividend.

The payment is subject to the approval of the regulatory authorities.

On the Group’s quarterly performance, Mrs. Hala Yateem, Chairperson of NBB, said: “The strong profitability is supported by a robust balance sheet, with total assets reaching BHD 5.5 billion, a 3% increase from the year-end level.

This performance has resulted in an annualised average return on equity of 16.4%, surpassing the 14.7% and 14.2% recorded on 30 June and 31 December 2023 respectively, highlighting NBB’s efforts to continually enhance the value it delivers to shareholders.

We received our third successive title for the ‘Best Retail Bank in Bahrain’ at the MEED MENA Banking Excellence Awards.

The Bank has also continued its investments in various community, health, educational, and environmental initiatives, resulting in our third regional Euromoney award for the ‘Middle East’s Best Bank for Corporate Responsibility’ and consecutive country accolades for ‘Best Bank in Bahrain for Corporate Responsibility’ and ‘Best Bank in Bahrain for ESG.

Building on this foundation, NBB is poised for further growth in the remainder of 2024 as we continue to contribute to the progress of the Kingdom’s financial sector and reinforce our position as the region’s leading Bank in corporate responsibility.”

Usman Ahmed, Group Chief Executive Officer of NBB, commented: “NBB Group has achieved strong growth in its core business in the first half of 2024, with operating profits of BHD 51.7 million representing an 11% increase over the same period in 2023.

This growth was underpinned by organic expansion of our business across Bahrain, UAE and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and represents the Bank’s strategic focus on its core geographies and customer segments, with loans and customer deposits increasing by 7% and 4% respectively from the yearend level.”

Ahmed added: “In addition to our client business, our professional markets activities also continue to deliver exceptional returns.

Continuing with our commitment to client-centric innovation, we launched NBB GO during the second quarter, a cutting-edge SoftPOS application that simplifies and redefines the mobile payment experience for small businesses.” “As we move forward, NBB remains focused on further expanding its scale and profitability through serving its clients and driving innovation, while also creating positive social impact,” said the Group Chief Executive Officer of NBB.