RIYADH: The Saudi British Bank has announced a net profit of SAR 1.286 billion for the quarter ended March 31, 2019, which is up 23.77% as compared with the profit of SAR 1.039 billion recorded in the corresponding quarter last year.[the_ad id=”31605″]The earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter under review clocked in at SAR 0.86 as against EPS of SAR 0.69 in the same period last year.
The increase in net profit was primarily driven by 11.8% increase in total operating income mainly due to a 12.4% increase in net special commission income and a 2.2% increase in exchange income net, partially offset by a 0.7% decrease in fee and commission income net.
Total operating expenses decreased by 4.5% including a 56.2% improvement in provision for credit losses net, and with an increase in other operating expense items that incorporated SAR 58 million of merger-related integration planning and transaction costs in the current quarter.