Union National Bank Q1 profit increases to AED452 million

ABU DHABI / WAM

The Union National Bank (UNB) on Wednesday reported a net profit of AED452 million in the first three months of 2017, compared to AED 450.0 million in the same period a year ago, according to the bank statement on April 12. Mohammad Nasr Abdeen, Chief Executive Officer, UNB, said, “The liquidity situation in the market improved during first quarter of 2017 with gradually improving economic prospects. However, the credit growth remained muted as the operating environment continues to align with the new global and regional economic paradigm.”
The operating income and operating profit both registered increases compared to the same period last year, driven by higher business volumes. The operating profit for the first quarter of the year was AED 631 million, an increase of 15 per cent over the same period of prior year. The operating income for the three-month period ended March 31, 2017 was up by 10 percent at AED897 million compared to the corresponding period of previous year, driven by growth in both net interest income and non-interest income.
The increase in net interest income was led by the growth in the loan book. The net interest margin decreased by 5 bps to 2.58 percent due to an increase in cost of funds in Q1-2017 over the corresponding period of 2016. There was a robust increase in the non-interest income of the UNB Group to AED 245 million in the first quarter, up by 29 percent over the same period last year. Loans and advances were up by eight per cent year-on-year to AED73.5 billion as at 31st March 2017.