NBK-Bahrain reports net profits of KD 95.2m for 2018, up 26% y-o-y
KUWAIT: National Bank of Kuwait-Bahrain (NBK Bahrain), reported net profits of BHD 118 million (equivalent to KD 95.2 million) for the year 2018 compared with BHD 93.5 million (equivalent to KD 75.3 million) in 2017, a growth of 26 percent year-on-year.
As of end of 2018, NBK-Bahrain’s total assets increased by 9 percent y-o-y to BHD 6.3 billion, compared with BHD 5.8 billion in 2017. While total shareholders’ equity increased by 14 percent y-o-y to BHD 683.3 million. Customer deposits increased by 7 percent y-o-y to BHD 3.2 billion Isam Al-Sager, NBK Group Chief Executive Officer said “The Bank’s strong results affirm the success of NBK Group’s regional expansion strategy that is built on a culture of prudence and strict risk management practices.” Al-Sager pointed out that the strength of NBK-Bahrain’s profits stems primarily from being operationally.
Al-Sager added: “the strong growth achieved by NBK-Bahrain is a testament to the success of its vision aimed at affirming its position in the Bahraini market, which is one of the main growth markets for NBK Group, given its promising growth opportunities and positive prospects”.
“Our diversification extends to the product and service offering, growth in existing geographies, our approach to new business opportunities, and our commitment to a digital transformation that will position the Bank for future growth,” Al-Sager added.
Ali Fardan, NBK-Bahrain General Manager, said “This strong performance reflects our conservative management as we have consistently focused on our core business and ways to diversify sources of income. We continue to grow our operations locally by developing new products to serve our customers benefiting from the support of NBK Group.”
NBK has been present in Bahrain since 1977 and enjoys strong and historical relationships with the major Bahraini and international companies, Al-Fardan added.
NBK continues to enjoy collectively one of the highest ratings among all banks in the Middle East from the three international rating agencies Moody’s, Fitch Ratings and Standard and Poor’s. The Bank’s ratings are supported by its high capitalization, prudent lending policies, and its disciplined approach to risk management, in addition to its highly recognized and very stable management team. NBK was also named among Global Finance’s list of the 50 safest banks in the world for the twelve consecutive times and was awarded as the Best Bank in Kuwait in 2017 by the Banker, Euromoney and Global Finance.
NBK enjoys the widest banking presence with a local and international network reaching 4 continents. NBK’s international presence spans many of the world’s leading financial centers including New York, Europe, GCC, Middle East, Singapore as well as China (Shanghai).