The 67th Annual General Meeting of National Bank of Pakistan was held on Wednesday. The meeting was well attended by the shareholders. Chairman Muneer Kamal and President Syed Iqbal Ashraf also attended the meeting. The Board of Directors in its meeting held on February 19, 2016, had proposed a final cash dividend of Rs 7.50 per share (75 percent) for the year ended December 31, 2015.
This translates into 92 percent dividend payout of the bank''''s distributable profit for the year 2015 (after statutory reserve allocation) and is among the highest in the banking industry. The shareholders were informed that the bank has achieved an exponential 51 percent growth in pre-tax profit for the year as it increased by Rs 11.2 billion from Rs 22 billion for the year 2014 to Rs 33.2 billion for the year 2015.
This is a complete turnaround from year 2013; and is higher by 368 percent from 2013. The increase in profit before tax is mainly derived through 17 percent growth in core net interest/ mark-up income, and 15% growth in non interest / mark-up income.
To mitigate the impact of the policy rate cut, the Bank managed its earning assets portfolio-mix in an optimum manner. It was presented to the shareholders that the improved results were achieved through effective execution of strategies which encompass improving deposits mix for higher net interest income, portfolio optimisation and re-profiling, cost controls, business automation and expansion in branch network. The bank also focused on recoveries against non-performing loans.
Higher dividend payout reflects bank''''s strong capital position with continuous focus on increasing stakeholder value by capitalising on opportunities to drive strong performance for the organisation and even higher payouts to the shareholders in the years ahead. The shareholders approved dividend payout of 75 percent cash dividend (Rs 7.50/- per share) as recommended by the Board of Directors of the bank.-PR