Byblos Bank Headquarters, 28 January 2014: Byblos Bank released full-year results for 2014, reporting healthy ratios and respectable increases in assets, deposits, loans, and profit despite challenging local and regional conditions. Total assets grew 3% (+USD 0.6 billion) to USD 19 billion as at 31 December 2014, while customers’ deposits rose 6.6% (+USD 1.0 billion) to USD 15.7 billion and customers’ loans were up 4.8% (+USD 0.2 billion) to USD 4.7 billion. At the same time, net profit registered an increase of 12.5% (+USD 19.5 million) to USD 175.7 million.
These and other aspects of the Bank’s performance were achieved while maintaining strong financial cushions to mitigate unexpected risks and counter economic volatility. Primary liquidity placed with banks and central banks (including Central Bank of Lebanon certificates of deposit), for example, totaled USD 9.5 billion at end-2014, representing 50% of total assets. In addition, Byblos Bank reported a capital adequacy ratio of 16.5%, far surpassing regulatory minimums of 11.5% for 2014 and 12% for 2015.
Byblos Bank also continued to enjoy sound credit quality despite the economic slowdown in Lebanon, keeping net non-performing loans (NPL) to net loans below 1% as at 31 December 2014, and achieving an NPL coverage ratio – including collective provisions – of 120% as at the same date.
As in previous years, Byblos Bank attributed its 2014 results to a time-tested strategy of maintaining rock-solid stability in the face of less-than-ideal conditions. The hallmarks of this approach include high liquidity and capital adequacy ratio, the allocation of sufficient provisions against potential credit losses, and conservative lending policies.
Alongside world-class products and services, this kind of prudent management has helped Byblos Bank gain and retain the confidence of clients, investors and other stakeholders. The Byblos Bank Group’s shareholders include the International Finance Corporation, private sector arm of the World Bank Group; the Agence Française de Développement, the French government’s development agency; the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development; and the OPEC Fund for International Development.