National Bank of Bahrain net profit rises 15% to $59.4mln

National Bank of Bahrain net profit rises 15% to $59.4mln

National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) has seen a 15 per cent rise in its net profit to a record BD22.4 million ($59.4m) for the first quarter (Q1), compared to BD19.4m in the same period of 2022.

The increase in net profit is mainly due to higher income from loans and securities and continued higher performance from the capital market and treasury teams.

Earnings per share increased to 10 fils for the first quarter of 2023 compared with 9 fils in the same quarter of 2022.

Total comprehensive income for the quarter decreased by 62pc to BD15.4m compared with BD40.9m in 2022, due to the negative mark-to-market movements of the equity and Bahrain sovereign bond portfolios.

The prior year results included significant fair value gains in both the equity and bond portfolios as we exited the pandemic, which were not applicable to 2023.

The group’s total equity decreased by 7pc to BD529.1m compared to BD565.9m reported on December 31, 2022.

The decrease followed the payment of BD51.5m in cash dividend during the first quarter of 2023.

The group’s total assets increased by 1pc during the quarter to BD4.82 billion compared to BD4.79bn as on December 31, 2022.

The increase was deployed in further strengthening the group’s liquid assets and