​The Bank’s inaugural Earnings Investor Call was attended by investors and stakeholders who gained insight on the Group’s outstanding financial performance and its refreshed strategy to become MENA’s leading international bank of the future.

Manama, Bahrain: On 21st November 2023, Bank ABC has successfully held a quarterly Earnings Investor Call for the nine months ended September 2023. Hosted by the Group Chief Executive Officer, Sael Al Waary and the Group Chief Financial Officer, Brendon Hopkins, the virtual session was well-attended by the Bank’s investors and stakeholders. 

The Earnings Call provided insights into Bank ABC’s strong financial performance and refreshed Group strategy to become MENA’s International Bank of the Future. 

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Significant milestones Bank ABC has achieved in recent times were highlighted, including: 

• Harnessing innovation to build long-term shareholder value through its cutting-edge digital banking investments in its revolutionary digital, mobile-only bank, ila, and the Group’s fintech payments company, AFS.
• Bank ABC’s strategic acquisition of BLOM Bank Egypt, which is in the final stages of integration and has tripled the Bank’s market share in a key MENA market of the future.
• Growth across the Group’s international banking franchise, with Total Assets crossing US$40 billion for the first time, and Total Operating Income increasing strongly and on track for another record year, having crossed the US$1 billion mark in 2022.
• A fully refreshed Group strategy recently approved by the Board, aimed at accelerating net profit growth and delivering a higher return on equity for shareholders.

The audience were also assured that the Group is closely monitoring the challenging external regional and global landscape, staying focused on growing its core business and franchise, while keeping operating costs and cost of risk under control, within a risk appetite adapted to its diversified portfolio. 

Group CEO, Sael Al Waary, commented: “I am pleased to see the strong participation in today’s call from shareholders and investors, which reflects keen interest in ABC’s strategy and performance, and is a show of confidence from the market.”

In his presentation, Mr. Al Waary provided insights on the Group’s solid strategy for growth, which is based on three key pillars:  

• Accelerating core performance in the Group’s Wholesale, Retail and Brazilian Banking franchises, to create near term value.
• Maximizing the value of the digital units to build long-term shareholder value.
• Strengthening the Group’s operating model, with aspects such as improving organizational effectiveness, implementing sustainability strategy, and investing in agile infrastructure, to harness developments in AI across ABC’s businesses.​
  

The Group CFO, Brendon Hopkins, then elaborated on the Bank’s strong financial performance for the nine months ending September 2023, focusing on:

• Strong revenue growth reaching US$943 million, representing a 19% year-on-year growth.
• Positive revenue / cost jaws of +7%, leading to a reduction in cost / income ratio to 54% (excluding digital unit investments)
• A surge in Net Profit by 61%, reaching US$183 million, translating into ROE of 5.9% for the period, increasing approximately 2%.
• A robust balance sheet with all key capital and liquidity metrics at strong levels (CET1 13.7%, T1 15.4%, NSFR 122%, LCR 247%), enabling the maintenance of the strong growth momentum.

Further questions were answered from participants on the Bank’s refreshed strategic direction, financial achievements, and future aspirations, which led to the conclusion of Bank ABC’s successful inaugural Earnings Investor Call.