Al Salam Bank yesterday announced net profits attributable to owners of parent group of BD14 million ($37.1m) in the first quarter of 2024 compared to BD10.3m ($27.3m) in the same quarter in 2023, reflecting a significant increase of 36.3 per cent.

The increase is predominantly driven by growth in the core banking activities of the group and the acquisition of a subsidiary in the second quarter of 2023.

Correspondingly, earnings per share increased by 32.4pc to 4.9 fils in Q1 2024 compared to 3.7 fils for the same period in 2023.

Total comprehensive income attributable to owners of the parent for the quarter was BD26.2m – a 34.5pc increase from BD19.5m recorded in the first quarter of 2023.

Total income for the quarter was BD68.7m, reflecting a robust 46pc increase from the BD47m recorded in the first quarter of 2023.

Total equity attributable to the parents’ shareholders increased by 2.2pc from BD337.4m as of end-2023 to BD344.8m as of end-March 2024.

Total assets increased by 3.3pc to BD5.3 billion in Q1 2024, up from BD5.1bn as of end-2023.

The growth was mainly driven by increase in new asset bookings during the period.

The bank continued to maintain a strong capital adequacy ratio of 22.3pc as of end-March 2024.

Al Salam Bank chairman Shaikh Khalid bin Mustahil Al Mashani commented: “Following an extremely successful 2023 during which we demonstrated resilience and agility in managing challenging economic headwinds, we continued our forward momentum in the first quarter of 2024 achieving significant and sustainable profitability growth.

“As the global economy stabilises, the bank will look to continue to expand its core banking activities, capitalise on growth opportunities and aim to deliver our aggressive profitability aspirations.”

Rafik Nayed, group chief executive of Al Salam Bank, said: “The bank recorded a strong start to 2024 achieving significant growth across all our verticals as we continue to build on our robust foundations to better serve our customers and deliver sustainable value to stakeholders.

“While our scale and profitability aspirations remain a key priority in our strategy, achieving 26.1pc and 18.9pc growth respectively during the previous five years (CAGR), we remain dedicated to delivering significant value to our broader community and have launched the ‘Why Stop Here’ ESG campaign to empower and develop key social sectors including support for national sports teams.”

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