ComBank says steady performance despite pandemic

Commercial Bank Group’s profit before income tax recorded a decline of 2.10 per cent over the corresponding period to total Rs. 16.394 billion for the nine months ending September 2020, a trend seen in many banks.

The group’s income tax charge for the period, at Rs. 5.219 billion, was marginally down by 0.15 per cent while net profit at Rs. 11.175 billion, reflected a reduction of 2.98 per cent, the bank said in a media release.

The banking group reported total operating income of Rs. 55.818 billion achieving a growth of 11.84 per cent mainly by more than doubling other income for the period from Rs. 5.804 billion to Rs. 12.262 billion, even though net interest income, the largest component, only improved by a marginal 1.02 per cent to Rs. 36.796 billion.

“Financial statements filed with the Colombo Stock Exchange show that the capital gains on Treasury investments generated a net gain of Rs. 4.658 billion on de-recognition of financial assets, more than a 10-fold increase over the

Rs. 444.754 million for the corresponding nine months of last year, “the bank said in a statement.

“Banks, like all other businesses, have to roll with the punches dealt by the global pandemic, and our nine months reflect just that,” Commercial Bank Chairman Dharma Dheerasinghe said. “While the core banking dynamic of lending versus deposits is directly impacted, astute management of investments, trading, services and other revenue generating activities ensures that although profits are affected, the bank remains financially strong and stable and able to navigate the external adversities.”

Commercial Bank Managing Director S. Renganathan said: “We have made additional provisions for tourism sector exposures which were identified as more vulnerable to the effects of the COVID- 19 pandemic. We believe the Commercial Bank is better positioned than most to take the challenges of the times in its stride due to its diversified assets structure.”