Bank of Sharjah assets going strong

Bank of Sharjah on Saturday announced its financial results for the six months ending June 30, 2011, which shows bank’s underlying strength. The bank’s total assets as of June 30, 2011, reached Dhs21.3 billion compared to Dhs18.7 billion at the end of the same period in 2010, an increase of 13 per cent. As of June 30, 2011, the bank’s total deposits stood at Dhs15.4 billion compared to Dhs13.4 billion as of the same period in 2010, an increase of 15 per cent. The increase in deposits over loans and advances significantly enhanced the bank’s loans-to-deposits ratio, which further reduced during the period to reach 0.82 in June 2011 from 0.89 in June 2010. Compared to the corresponding period of 2010, net liquidity surged by 73 per cent in the first half of 2011. improvement in liquidity, which was driven by the 15 per cent increase in deposits, led to the 12 per cent drop in net interest income, due to the depressed interbank interest rates.Net profit for the first half of 2011 reached Dhs152 million compared to Dhs276 million in the corresponding period of 2010. Some dip in the current period was mainly caused by an increase in the collective impairment provisions. Total comprehensive income reached Dhs162 million compared with AED 231 million for the corresponding 2010 period, bringing the decline in the current period earnings to 30 per cent instead of 45 per cent. Varouj Nerguizian, Executive Director and General Manager at Bank of Sharjah, said, “The adoption of new accounting standards has brought us into uncharted territory regarding the recognition of actual profit and thereafter its distribution.”