Arab Bank Group announced its results for the first half of 2017 reporting net income after tax of USD 415.2 million as compared to USD 424.9 million for the corresponding period of 2016. The results were driven by solid growth in underlying core revenues and were achieved despite the impact of the translation effect of foreign currency devaluations.
Net operating income before provisions and taxes reached USD 593.5MN as compared to USD 591.3 MN. Excluding the effect of the devaluations of a number of arab and foreign currencies, the Group’s net operating income grew by 7%. Customer deposits stood at USD 33.5 billion whilst the loans and advances increased by 4% to reach USD 24.7 billion.
Mr. Sabih Masri, Chairman of the Board of Directors stated that the strong performance of Arab Bank Group confirms the success of the Group in dealing with the challenging operating environment.
Mr. Nemeh Sabbagh, Chief Executive Officer, stated that despite geopolitical and macro economic uncertainties in the region, the underlying performance of Arab Bank Group for the six months period ended 30 June 2017 has been strong, recording solid growth in net operating income of 7%, after excluding the impact of FX devaluations.
Mr. Sabbagh stated that Arab Bank Group enjoys high liquidity and robust capitalization. As of 30 June 2017, the Group’s loan-to-deposit ratio stood at 68.2%, while the capital adequacy ratio calculated in accordance with the new Basel III regulations reached 15.6%. He added that the asset quality of the Group remains high, and that credit provisions held against non-performing loans continue to exceed 100%, excluding the value of collaterals held.
Mr. Masri stated that the diversified business model and geographic profile of Arab Bank Group demonstrates its resilience and its ability to deliver sustainable growth.
Arab Bank was named the “Best Bank in the Middle East for 2017 and 2016 by Global Finance magazine.