DUBAI: UAE lender National Bank of Ras Al-Khaimah (RAKBank) on Sunday said first-quarter net profit rose 42 percent, boosted by an improvement in lending activity and higher customer deposits.
Abu-Dhabi-listed RAKBank said net profit rose to AED 228.1 million ($62.09 million) in the first quarter, compared with AED160.3 million for the year-ago period.
"Although economic recovery is subdued there remain good lending opportunities," said general manager Graham Honeybill in a statement.
First-quarter loans rose 6.6 percent compared to the previous quarter, while customer deposits were up by AED1.2 billion compared to the previous quarter.
The bank booked AED81.3 million in provisions on its loan portfolio for the quarter, a strong increase compared to the same period last year.
"We are, however, seeing an improvement in future trends," the bank said.
Most UAE banks’ results have suffered from a sharp increase in provisions in the past year, as a result of the local and global economic slowdown, as well as a regional real estate downturn.
