NASSAU, BAHAMAS — The Bank of the Bahamas has reported a nearly $12 million net income at the close of its financial year, with its managing director Kenrick Braithwaite noting that the BISX-listed lender was steadily moving towards the growth targets set out in its three-year strategic plan.
Braithwaite said: “We have had a pretty good year with almost $12 million in profits. We want to work towards sustainable long-term profits and so we are doing things to ensure that is so. The performance is a good sign and we’re moving toward where we need to be for the long term. We have a three-year strategic plan and we’re now going into year two. By the end of this calendar year, we should be almost completed with all of things we need to be at the level we want in terms of growth.”
The BISX-listed lender in its recently released financial performance report for the year ended June 30, 2022 recorded a net income of $11.8 million compared to a net income of $3.7 million for the year ended June 30, 2021, representing a significant increase of $8.1 million (216.43 percent).
According to Braithwaite, this increase was primarily due to the increase in the bank’s total operating income of $5 million (11.34 percent), together with lower impairment losses of $4.4 million (-92.53 percent) year to date.
“The significant decrease in net impairment losses year to date was primarily attributable to reduced provisions expense on credit facilities and other financial assets, along with significantly higher loan recoveries as the Bank allotted significant resources on its loan collection efforts resulting in improved overall delinquency management. Higher total operating income year to date is driven by higher net interest income and non-interest income.
“The increase in interest income was due to the overall growth in consumer loans as a result of our loan campaigns while interest expense decreased due to the shift in customer deposit balances to shorter-term/lower interest rate products,” Braithwaite noted in a statement on the bank’s financial performance.
He furthered that the bank’s financial position remains strong with total assets of approximately $978.6 million with the composite of loans and advances (net) at $368.5 million as at June 30, 2022. The bank’s liquidity position also remained strong as its cash equivalents grew by $90.9 million while investment securities stood at $73.9 million.