Dubai: Commercial Bank International (CBI) reported a net profit of Dh68.7 million, in the first half of 2016, up 168 per cent from the same period in 2015.

Growth in earnings were supported by growth in wholesale and Islamic banking businesses, an increase in customer deposits and expense management, the bank said in a statement.

Revenue for the first half of the year was Dh397.5 million, down 8 per cent from the year before mainly due to the one off revenues from the sales of non-core assets in the first half of 2015.

“CBI’s recent credit rating and profitability are evidence that the growth strategy is on track — despite a challenging market environment,” said Mohammad Sultan Al Qadi, Chairman of CBI.

The bank’s net fee and commission income increased by 3.9 per cent to Dh127.9 million in the first half of 2016 from Dh123.1 million in the same period last year, primarily due to increases in trade transactions and retail banking. Customer deposits reached Dh11.815 billion, up 6.8 per cent from Dh11.billion in the first half of last year.

“Over the first half of this year, CBI has seen a sustained increase in banking activity, customer deposits and fee income due to enhancements in wholesale banking, Islamic banking, and customer service,” said Mark T. Robinson, CEO of CBI.

Security gains

Net loans and advances increased by 12 per cent to Dh12.83 billion in the first half of 2016 from Dh11.5 billion at the year-end 2015. Net operating income was down 20 per cent year on year to Dh178 million in the first six months of this year. This was due to securities gains in 2015, and compression in interest margins consistent with the market.

“Our strategy is on track, and CBI continues to attract new customers through having the speed and agility of a small bank, and the stability and security of a big bank through our relationship with QNB,” said Robinson.

During the first half of this year CBI reported improvement in asset quality with non-performing loans dropping by 40.2 per cent to Dh944 million from Dh1.58 billion in the same period last year. As a result, the bank reported an improved mon-performing loan ratio of 6.1 per cent compared to 10.3 per cent in first half of 2015 and a coverage ratio of 86.8 per cent. Total provisioning for CBI fell to Dh109.1 million which was 44.3 per cent lower than for the same period last year.

At the close of the first half capital adequacy remained was at 14.4 per cent, versus 14.5 per cent in the same period last year.