QNB 2018 net profit up 5% to $3.8bln

Qatar’s QNB Group, a leading financial institution in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, has posted a net profit of QR13.8 billion ($3.8 billion) for 2018, up by 5 per cent compared to same period last year.

Total assets increased by 6 per cent from December 2017 to reach QR862 billion ($237 billion), the highest ever achieved by the Group and one of the best set of results in QNB Group's history, a statement said.

The Board of Directors have recommended to the General Assembly for the distribution of a cash dividend of 60 per cent of the nominal share value (QR6.0 per share).

The key driver of total assets growth was from loans and advances which grew by 5 per cent to reach QR613 billion ($168 billion). This was mainly funded by customer deposits which increased by 5 per cent to reach QR617 billion ($169 billion) from December 2017. QNB's strong asset liability management capabilities helped QNB Group to improve its loans to deposits ratio to 99.3 per cent as at 31 December 2018.

The Group's drive for operational efficiency is yielding cost-savings in addition to sustainable revenue generating sources. This helped QNB Group to improve the efficiency ratio (cost to income ratio) to 25.8 per cent, from 29.1 per cent last year, which is considered one of the best ratios among large financial institutions in the region.

The ratio of non-performing loans to gross loans amounted to 1.9 per cent as at 31 December 2018, a level considered one of the lowest amongst financial institutions in the MEA region, reflecting the high quality of the Group's loan book and the effective management of credit risk. The Group's conservative policy in regard to provisioning resulted in the coverage ratio at 104 per cent as at 31 December 2018.

Total Equity increased by 12 per cent from December 2017 to reach QR88 billion ($24 billion) as at 31 December 2018. Earnings per Share reached QR14.4 ($3.9), compared to QR13.7 ($3.8) in December 2017.

Group Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) as at 31 December 2018 amounted to 19.0 per cent, higher than the regulatory minimum requirements of the Qatar Central Bank and Basel Committee. QNB Group successfully raised another QR10 billion as Additional Tier 1 capital notes to support growth of the Group's activities and operations.

QNB Group serves a customer base of more than 23 million customers with more than 29,000 staff resources operating from more than 1,100 locations and 4,400 ATMs. – TradeArabia News Service

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