Union Bank reports impressive 49% growth in pre-tax profit

Union Bank has showcased an impressive performance in 2018 aided by its robust strategic plan, “particularly excelling in core banking operations despite a challenging macroeconomic framework”.

In a media release, the bank said its pre-tax profit for 2018 was Rs. 1,248 million. “More importantly, the core-income of the bank, excluding the capital gains and the negative impact due to the investments on the newly launched credit cards, reflected a 124 per cent growth year on year (YoY),” it said.

However, post-tax profit (PAT) was affected by the significant changes of tax regulations subsequent to enforcement of the new Inland Revenue Act, and as a result recorded only a 2.6 per cent growth (YoY) to Rs.473 million.

Commenting on the performance of the bank, Director/CEO Indrajit Wickramasinghe said that, “2018 was a year that placed heavy demands on the banking industry which faced multiple headwinds in the economic and political spheres. With cohesive strategic realignment, Union Bank remained resilient and showcased impressive progress and financial performance with outstanding growth in its core banking operations. Our aim is to further strengthen our position as one of Sri Lanka’s fastest growing banks …”

The Net Interest Income of the bank reached Rs.3,652 million in 2018, a YoY increase of 19.9 per cent.

Despite the weakening of the currency towards the end of the year, the bank’s exchange income showed a noteworthy growth of 73.6 per cent YoY. Operating expenses of the bank were prudently managed to see an increase of only 11.5 per cent to Rs. 3,729 million. The Group, consisting of the bank and its two subsidiaries, UB Finance Company Ltd and National Asset Management Limited reported a PAT of Rs. 535 million in 2018. Total assets of the group stood at Rs. 135,032 million.