CB Bank Limited posts highest 9 month profit of all private sector banks - Maintains industry's highest quarterly payout of Rs4/share.

The Board of Directors of MCB Bank Limited met under the Chairmanship of Mian Mohammad Mansha, on October 17, 2019 to review the performance of the Bank and approve the condensed interim financial statements for the nine months ended September 30, 2019. The Board of Directors has declared 3rd interim cash dividend of Rs. 4.0 per share i.e. 40% bringing the total cash dividend for the year ending 2019 to 120%, continuing with its highest in the industry dividend payout trend.

MCB reported profit before tax of Rs. 27.51 billion which is 18% higher than the corresponding last period and translated into earnings per share of Rs. 13.74 (2018: Rs. 12.08). The key highlights of the performance were impressive increase in net interest margins through gradual shift in the maturity profiling of investment base along with an efficient cost base. Profit after tax (PAT) of the Bank increased by 14% to Rs. 16.29 billion as the bank recorded additional super tax @ 4% for the tax year 2018, as enacted through the Second Supplementary Finance Act, 2019. Effective tax rate for the nine months ended September 30, 2019 came to 41% which is 2% higher than the corresponding last period.

Net interest income increased to Rs. 42.99 billion, 27% higher than corresponding last period. Volumetric growth in average earning assets, particularly investments, along with effective mix of shorter maturity earning assets in a rising interest rate scenario enabled the Bank to post growth in gross mark-up income of Rs. 39.52 billion, up 67% over corresponding last period. The Bank has been riding the yield curve over the last few years, taking the benefit of the significant interest rate hike despite the fact that interests on deposits are repriced earlier than the earning assets.

The non-markup income block of the Bank was reported at Rs. 11.45 billion with major contributions coming in from fee commission and foreign exchange income. Fees and commissions generated from core banking businesses increased by 5% to Rs. 8.32 billion. Foreign exchange income increased by 26% to Rs. 2.19 billion as a result of better leveraging of market opportunities.

Despite the inflationary surge during the period, (September-19 YoY CPI of 12.5%) and growth in the operational network and infrastructure, operating expenses recorded...