HBL Declares Consolidated Profit after Tax of Rs 9.9 Billion

HBL Declares Consolidated Profit after Tax of Rs 9.9 Billion

HBL today declared a consolidated profit after tax of Rs 9.9 billion for the first nine months of 2018, with earnings per share at Rs 6.57. Along with the results, the Board declared a dividend of Rs 1.00 per share (10%), bringing the total dividend for the nine months of 2018 to Rs 3.00 per share. Profit before tax for the nine months of 2018 was Rs 17.7 billion. The consolidated Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) as at September 30, 2018 was over 17%, an increase of 105 bps over December 2017, while the Bank’s Tier 1 CAR rose by 75 bps to 12.74%. 

HBL’s core domestic business remains robust. Total domestic deposits increased from December 2017 levels to Rs 1.8 trillion, maintaining our leading market share at over 14%. In the first nine months of 2018, the Bank added Rs 101 billion in domestic CASA deposits, led by a 10% growth in current accounts. The ratio of current accounts and CASA both continued to improve, rising further over June 2018 to 37.3% and 88.1% respectively. HBL’s consistent deposit growth momentum resulted in average current accounts showing an impressive increase of Rs 80 billion, a growth of 15% compared to the first nine months of 2017. 

HBL’s domestic loan book increased further over June 2018, reaching Rs 819 billion. Our well-constructed Consumer business reached a landmark of Rs 50 billion in consumer loans. These positive developments on the domestic Balance Sheet contributed to a 2% improvement in domestic net interest income. However, with a reduction in the Bank’s international businesses, total net interest income declined marginally by 1% to Rs 61.1 billion. The strong recovery performance continued, as the Bank recorded a reversal of Rs 144 million during the quarter. Total reversals against loans are now Rs 388 million for the nine months of 2018, compared to a provision of Rs 313 million in 9M 2017. 

HBL is committed to promoting the financial inclusion of the country’s unbanked population and to expanding the digital retail payments infrastructure. Our innovative Konnect product has shown excellent performance in just one quarter with nearly 900,000 accounts opened, 25% of whom are women. Since launch, 7.8 million transactions valued at Rs 29 billion have taken place on the Konnect platform. Our digital channels of Internet Banking and HBL Mobile increased their acceptance, with users and usage both doubling over the prior year. HBL’s investments in its Business Transformation program are now beginning to bear fruit in the form of a more embedded compliance culture. The Bank continues to expand its reach to provide service and convenience to its growing branch customer base. During 2018, the Bank has added over 823,000 customers, who it reaches through over 1,700 branches, more than 2,100 ATMs and 18,600 POS machines across Pakistan. 

During the quarter HBL’s efforts in infrastructure development were recognized through two prestigious awards by Asiamoney; we were named as the Best Regional Bank for Belt & Road Initiatives and as the Best Bank for infrastructure finance in the region. HBL looks forward to playing a leading role in national development and contributing to the growth of priority sectors.