Dutch-Bangla Bank makes record profit amid pandemic

Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited (DBBL) made a record profit of Tk550 crore in 2020 – the highest in the last 20 years – beating the raging pandemic, according to an analysis of the bank's financial accounts.

The listed bank's profit rose by 26.68% compared to that of a year ago.

Seeking anonymity, a Dutch-Bangla bank official said the bank has had the highest profit recorded in its history. It has never made this much profit before.

"As the bank has a strong foundation, it has been able to cope with the pandemic's shocks and make a good profit, which is increasingly on the rise," he said.

Dutch-Bangla Bank has announced a 30% dividend for its shareholders after reviewing its financial statements. At least 15% of this dividend will be in cash and 15% in stock.

In 2019, the bank paid a 15% cash and 10% stock dividend.

Dutch-Bangla Bank was listed on the stock exchange in 2001.

According to the Dutch-Bangla Bank website, it was the first bank in Bangladesh to be fully automated.

The Electronic-Banking Division was established in 2002 to undertake rapid automation and introduce modern banking services.

Full automation was completed in 2003 and thereby introduced plastic money to its customers.

Dutch-Bangla Bank operates the nation's largest ATM fleet and, in the process, has drastically cut consumer costs and fees by 80%.

Although there is a single digit interest rate on loan disbursement, which is low now, Dutch-Bangla Bank's profit on the other hand has increased significantly.

Experts say the central bank's directive to suspend loan classification for the convenience of traders played a positive role in making profits. This is because the bank had to keep provisions against defaulted loans, and this time, provisions have been kept low as the number of defaulters has not increased.

As of September 2020, the default loan of Dutch-Bangla Bank was Tk730.64 crore, which stood at Tk592 crore at the end of December. As of December 2019, the bank's default loan amount was Tk1,107 crore.

As of 31 December, 2020, Dutch-Bangla Bank's earnings per share (EPS) was Tk10, which is 26.84% higher than that in the previous year.

The net asset value (NAV) of the bank stood at Tk3,225.66 crore and NAV per share stood at Tk58.65.

In 2019, the bank had a net profit of Tk434.14 crore and EPS was Tk7.89. Its NAV and NAV per share were Tk2744.33 crore and Tk49.90 crore, respectively.

According to the bank, its annual general meeting will be held on 26 April, virtually. The record date for the distribution of dividends is slated for 28 March.

Dutch-Bangla Bank Limited was established as a joint venture company at the initiative of the Netherlands Development Finance Company.

However, Netherlands Finance sold all its shares in 2019. The paid-up capital of the company is Tk500 crore.

As of 31 January, 2021, out of the total 55 crore shares: sponsors and directors hold 86.99%, institutional investors 5.04%, foreign investors 0.01%, and general investors 7.96%.