Brac Bank’s net profit drops, Islami & Mercantile banks’ increases slightly
Subsidiaries of the Brac Bank, Brac EPL Securities and Brac EPL Investment suffered losses
In the first nine months of the current year, net profit of the Brac Bank has dropped, whereas that of the Islami Bank Bangladesh Ltd and the Mercantile Bank has increased slightly.
The Brac Bank has made a net profit of Tk340 crore in the first nine months of the year, which was Tk398 crore in the same period of the previous year.
From January to September of 2019, earnings per share of the bank was Tk2.76, a drop from Tk3.23 compared to the same period last year.
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"The Brac Bank alone earned a profit of Tk376 crore, but its subsidiaries suffered a loss of Tk36 crore. Therefore, the consolidated net profit of the bank decreased," said a senior bank official on condition of anonymity.
The official added that as the share market had maintained the bearish trend in this period, the subsidiaries of the bank – Brac EPL Securities and Brac EPL Investment – suffered losses.
"Moreover, loan disbursement and interest collection of the bank had also declined during this period, contributing to the fall in net profit," the official told The Business Standard.
Meanwhile, the Islami Bank Bangladesh made a net profit of Tk353 crore and its earnings per share was Tk2.19 in the first three quarters of the year. In the corresponding period of the previous year, the bank's net profit was Tk345 crore and earnings per share was Tk2.14.
But in the third quarter (July-September), the bank's net profit dropped by 45 percent.
Similarly, the Mercantile Bank's net profit stood at Tk221 crore and its earnings per share was Tk2.36 in the first three quarters of the year. In the corresponding period of the previous year, the bank's net profit was Tk220 crore and earnings per share was Tk2.35.
The bank's Managing Director Quamrul Islam Chowdhury told The Business Standard that his bank was very much concerned about reducing the default loans of the bank, taking into consideration the current scenario of the country's the banking sector.
Therefore, the Mercantile Bank had to keep provisions to check bad loans, he said, hoping that the bank will do better in the days to come.
