EFG Hermes’ net profits in the first half (H1) of 2015 amounted to EGP 359.1m, down from the EGP 381.6m that were registered in the same period last year.
Meanwhile the investment bank’s unconsolidated financial statements show that losses have fallen by 38.8%, where they stood at EGP 54.1m in H1 compared to EGP 88.4m in the same period of the preceding year; the company said in an official statement to the Egyptian Stock Exchange (EGX), Wednesday.
Further, an official statement from EFG Hermes’ read that net profits in the second quarter (Q2) of 2015, were equivalent to EGP 125m.
This is the sixth consecutive quarter in which the company delivered net profits above the EGP 100m figure, the investment bank said.
With the recorded quarterly net profits, the bank has generated “a gain of 38% year-on-year if the Investment Bank recurring earnings are normalized by excluding one-off gain related to the sale of EFG Hermes’ stake in Sixth of October Development and Investment Company (“SODIC”) in 2Q 2014”, the statement read.
“Despite unfavourable market conditions, EFG Hermes still generated healthy profits for its shareholders with our team delivering a 41% net operating profit margin, aided in large measure by the execution of a strong investment banking pipeline, continued commitment to cost discipline, and a stronger performance by our commercial banking arm,” said EFG Hermes CEO Karim Awad in reference to Q2’s results
Meanwhile, in Q1 of the current year, EFG Hermes’ net profit surged by 14% year on year (YoY), recording EGP 136m.
In April, the EGX approved increasing the company’s issued capital from EGP 2.867bn to EGP 3.3bn.
The step marked an increase worth EGP 391.83m in the company’s capital, through distributing free stocks with 1.460 stocks for every 10 stocks, financed from 2014 revenues.
Moreover, an increase in authorised capital from EGP 3.2bn to EGP 6bn was also approved by the EGX.
EFG Hermes is a leading investment bank in the Arab world, headquartered in Egypt. A wide range of financial services are offered by the bank, amongst them are asset management, private equity, securities brokerage and investment banking.
EFG Hermes has a majority stake equivalent to 63.7% in the Lebanese commercial bank, Credit Libanais. The bank also operates in eight countries, with its services being extended to the rest of the Arab region with the bank’s local offices.
