The National Bank of Fujairah (NBF) achieved a net profit after tax of AED 441.2M for the first half of 2024, with a corporate tax expense of AED 43.8M.
In a press release issued today, Thursday, NBF announced a 46 percent year-on-year growth, ending the six-month period with a pre-tax profit of AED 484.9M, up from AED 332.1M during the same period in 2023.
In the second quarter of 2024, NBF recorded a pre-tax profit of AED 210.1M, marking a 16.7 percent increase over Q2 2023. This robust performance was attributed to higher interest rates, improved impairment provisions, efficient cost management, and favourable market conditions.
NBF’s operating profit for the six-month period was AED 845.8M, an increase of 7.7 percent compared to AED 785.3M in 2023, and a 5.1 percent rise for Q2 2024 over Q2 2023. Operating income reached AED 1.2B, up 8.2 percent from AED 1.1B in 2023.
Key highlights include:
- Net interest income and net income from Islamic financing and investment activities grew by 7.0 percent to AED 882.5M for the six-month period.
- Net fees, commission, and other income increased by 8.9 percent to AED 229.8M.
- Foreign exchange and derivatives income rose by 14.0 percent to AED 90.7M.
- Operating expenses went up by 9.4 percent, reflecting investments in digitalisation and customer service improvements.
- Net impairment provisions decreased by 20.4 percent to AED 360.9M.
- Total assets increased by 7.6 percent to AED 55.6B.
- Loans and advances and Islamic financing receivables rose by 5.5 percent to AED 29.4B.
- Investments and Islamic instruments increased by 8.6 percent to AED 8.8B.
- Customer deposits and Islamic deposits grew by 7.8 percent to AED 41.6B.
NBF maintained a strong capital adequacy ratio (CAR) of 18.6 percent, with Tier 1 at 17.5 percent and CET 1 at 14.1 percent. The return on average assets was 1.6 percent, and the return on average equity was 13.3 percent. The bank’s ratings were reaffirmed at Baa1/Prime-2 for deposits and A3 for counterparty risk assessment by Moody’s, with a stable outlook.
Dr. Raja Easa Al Gurg, Deputy Chairperson, stated, “We are pleased with the bank delivering another very strong set of results in the first half of 2024 and being honoured with a number of prestigious awards and endorsements. NBF’s financial performance over the recent quarters underscores the importance of maintaining a well-informed and strategic approach to achieving sustainable growth. NBF will continue to support quality opportunities to enhance shareholder value, facilitated by strong capital adequacy, ample liquidity and a well-diversified balance sheet.”
