Al Salam Bank (Bahrain Bourse Trading Code “SALAM”, Dubai Financial Market Trading Code “SALAM_BAH”) announced today net profits attributable to owners of parent of BD 14.0 million (US$ 37.1 million) in the first quarter of 2024 compared to BD 10.3 million (US$ 27.3 million) in the same quarter in 2023, reflecting a significant increase of 36.3%. 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 32.4% to 4.9 fils (US$ 13.0 cents) in Q1 2024 compared to 3.7 fils (US$ 9.8 cents) for the same period in 2023. Total comprehensive income attributable to owners of the parent for the quarter was BD 26.2 million (US$ 69.5 million) – a 34.5% increase from BD 19.5 million (US$ 51.7 million) recorded in the first quarter of 2023. Total income for the quarter was BD 68.7 million (US$ 182.2 million), reflecting a robust 46.0% increase from the BD 47.0 million (US$ 124.8 million) recorded in the first quarter of 2023.
Total equity attributable to the parents’ shareholders increased by 2.2% from BD 337.4 million (US$ 895.0 million) as at 31 December 2023 to BD 344.8 million (US$ 914.5 million) as at 31 March 2024. Total assets increased by 3.3% to BD 5.3 billion (US$ 14.1 billion) in Q1 2024 up from BD 5.1 billion (US$ 13.7 billion) as at year ended 31 December 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 22.3% as of 31 March 2024.
His Excellency Shaikh Khalid bin Mustahil Al Mashani, Chairman of Al Salam Bank, 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 stabilizes, the Bank will look to continue to expand its core banking activities, capitalize on growth opportunities and aim to deliver our aggressive profitability aspirations.”
Rafik Nayed, Group Chief Executive Officer 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 26.1% and 18.9% growth respectively during the previous 5 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.”
