Habib Bank Limited (HBL) on Wednesday declared a consolidated profit after tax of Rs 4.1 billion for the first quarter of 2020, a growth of 29 percent over the same period last year. Earnings per share increased to Rs 2.79 compared to Rs 2.08 in Q1'2019. Along with the results, the board declared a dividend of Rs 1.25 per share (12.5%).

Even in the prevailing economic conditions, HBL's key business lines, especially its core domestic business, remain robust. HBL's total advances increased by 1.1% to Rs 1.2 trillion, with strong performances from its market leading corporate and consumer franchises and with renewed growth from the international business. The bank remains focused on continued lending to support its customers, with the ADR increasing to 49.6%. HBL's total deposit base, at Rs 2.4 trillion, remains at a healthy level with strong CA and CASA ratios of 35.6% and 82.7% respectively.

Compared to the same period last year, the bank's average domestic balance sheet grew by Rs 235 billion, based on a 6.0% growth in average current deposits and 8.6% in average total deposits. This growth, along with higher net interest margins contributed to a 21% increase in domestic net interest income over Q1'19. The bank's fee income of Rs 4.7 billion remains robust at the domestic as well as the international level. Excluding the impact of the sharp depreciation in the rupee, the bank's total non-fund income was 19% higher than in Q1'19.

The bank's administrative expenses have increased by 20% over Q1'19. This is primarily a result of higher costs in New York where closure activities have been accelerated to put this significant drag behind us. Consequently, closure costs originally expected later in the year have been recorded upfront and the costs associated with NY should taper off sharply going forward. The bank's NPLs have declined by Rs 1.2 billion over Dec'19 while asset quality and coverage have improved to 6.4% and 93.4% respectively.

The bank's risk weighted assets increased as a result of local market conditions as well as the impact of devaluation on international assets. Nevertheless, HBL's Capital Adequacy Ratio improved over December 2019, to 15.39%, as a result of strong internal capital generation.

HBL entered Q1 2020 on a buoyant note with all engines firing. The first two months of the quarter saw HBL accelerate the business momentum. However, in the later part of the quarter, the global Coronavirus (Covid-19) Public Health crisis had a severe fallout over the global business and the financial system, including HBL. The bank, while delivering on its performance matrices, met the challenges of the Covid-19 crisis with resolve, passion and an incredible sense of duty to maintain its banking services.

The bank achieved a 6% increase in its customer base, now touching some 21 million customers.

HBL and Ehsaas have also joined forces to enable the delivery of the Ehsaas Emergency Cash programme for disbursing approximately PKR 90 billion to an estimated 7.5 million beneficiaries.

HBL became the first bank to establish its card payment ecosystem on the contactless technology. The cards business volumes have grown 30% versus same period year ago. Employee Banking and Cash Management, both strong indicators of HBL's market leadership position, have registered an increase of 51% and 39% respectively. HBL's Islamic Banking arm is working with NAPHDA, assisting them in fulfilling their mission of building more than 5 million affordable housing units.

As Q1 2020 drew towards a strong finish, and the nation rallied behind the 5th edition of HBLPSL, Pakistan was hit by the ongoing, extraordinary crisis of the global pandemic Covid-19. As Pakistan's largest bank, HBL's response to this crisis rests on the four pillars of Resilience, Supporting the Businesses, Helping the most Vulnerable and Giving back to the Community.

HBL is also distributing 12,000 ration bags to the deserving families, from the coast of Makran to the mountains of Gilgit-Baltistan. Moreover, HBL and the Serena Hotel chain have joined hands in an initiative to provide 30,000 meal-boxes over a period of one month across seven cities to medical professionals battling at the frontline of the Covid-19 crisis in Pakistan.

HBL's Digital Banking Channels such as internet banking, HBL Mobile and HBL Konnect are fully functional. Most of HBL's 1700 branches and 2,100 ATMs remain open.

During Q1 2020, HBL won the 2020 Asiamoney Award for Best Domestic Bank. HBL also won the Pakistan Banking Awards (PBA) 2019 award for Best Bank for Small and Medium Businesses, and the award for Best Investment Banking. Furthermore, HBL won the 2020 Global Diversity and Inclusion Benchmarks Award (GDIB) for Recruitment, Retention, Development, and Advancement.

In conclusion, although no one today knows exactly when this public health crisis will pass, HBL intends to stand alongside its customers as we all emerge from this together. HBL is proud of its staff who have risen to the challenges and have been instrumental in delivering banking services in a difficult environment. Operating in the current circumstances may lead to, in Q2 2020 and even beyond, some increased costs and a corresponding reduction in short term profitability, but this is a worthwhile tradeoff for the longer term standing of our business and our customers.-PR