NRB Bank, a fourth generation private commercial bank, gained a profit of Tk 850 million in April-June (Q2) this year as opposed to a loss of Tk 28.5 million in the same quarter of the previous year.
The company's foreign exchange gain and operational efficiency played a role behind the turnaround in the second quarter through June.
The half-yearly results are also positive. The bank has reported a profit of Tk 100 million in January-June this year against a loss of Tk 420 million incurred in the same period of the previous year.
Chief Financial Officer (CFO) Sujan Barua said the bank had dealt with an operational crisis in H1, 2023, which was why the loan recovery was not up to the mark. At the same time, the provisional requirement was very high in the first six months of 2023.
The weak loan recovery and high provisioning worth Tk 1.18 billion resulted in losses in both Q2 and H1 of 2023.
The bank's managing director (MD) resigned in December last year and the bank is still running without an MD.
The CFO said the existing bank's top management took some corrective measures in the first quarter of this year, including strengthening recovery of loans and relationships with clients.
The company's profit was Tk 15 million in Q1, 2024, which rose to Tk 85 million in Q2 through June.
The CFO said the lender had purchased dollars at a rate of Tk 109 in the first quarter of this year and the dollar price rose to Tk 117 in the second quarter.
"Our company was able to secure a handsome foreign exchange gain in Q2," he said.
The consolidated net operating cash flow per share, a measure of a company's ability to generate cash from its operations, more than doubled to Tk 13.68 for January-June this year.
The net asset value, which refers to the excess of total assets over total liabilities, also rose to Tk 12.70 per share as of June this year, as against Tk 11.79 in December last year.
The bank raised Tk 1 billion through an IPO to get listed on the bourses in February this year.
The CFO said the bank had already utilised the IPO fund fully. As per the IPO prospectus, the bank injected Tk 40 million into the capital market and invested Tk 930 million in fixed income securities.
The utilisation of the IPO fund will be translated into profits in the next quarter, said Mr Barua.
Despite the reported profit, the stock fell 2.42 per cent to Tk 12.1 per share on Wednesday on the Dhaka Stock Exchange. It had jumped 30 per cent in the month to July 18.
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