August 18th, 2023
The Board of Directors of Meezan Bank, in its meeting held at Islamabad on August 10, 2023 approved the financial statements of the Bank for the half year ended June 30, 2023. The meeting was chaired by Mr. Riyadh S.A. A. Edrees – Chairman of the Board, Mr. Faisal A. A. A. Al – Nassar – Vice Chairman of the Board was also present.
The Bank’s profit after tax increased to Rs 32.6 billion from Rs 17.1 billion in the corresponding period last year. The Board approved a second interim cash dividend of Rs 4 per share (40%), this brings the total cash dividend payout for the half year to Rs 7 (70%) per share as Rs 3.00 per share (30%) interim cash dividend was paid for the first quarter. The Bank remains a well-capitalized institution with a Capital Adequacy Ratio of 21.01% – significantly above the minimum regulatory requirement of 12.00%. Meezan Bank continues to be the most valuable bank in Pakistan in terms of market capitalization among all the listed banks.
Meezan Bank is one of the largest banks in Pakistan in terms of deposits, which closed at Rs 1.92 trillion. The Bank continued to maintain its leadership position in Roshan Digital Account (RDA) with a market share of 25% in terms of total RDA inflows in the banking industry of Pakistan. Meezan Bank has a network of 982 branches in more than 327 cities and more than 1,100 ATMs across the country. The Bank’s Mobile Banking App has been consistently ranked as the No.1 Mobile Banking App in Pakistan by both Apple Store and Google Play Store.
Total assets of the Bank crossed Rs 2.8 trillion, registering a 9% growth (Rs 221 billion), over December, 2022 (Rs 2.6 trillion). The Bank’s portfolio quality outperformed the industry’s average and the Bank’s non-performing financing ratio remained below 1.5%, the lowest in the banking industry. The Bank maintains a comfortable level of provisions against its non-performing financings with a coverage ratio of 172% – one of the highest in the banking industry.
Administrative and other expenses increased to Rs 31.3 billion from Rs 21.2 billion predominantly attributable to high inflation, a pronounced devaluation of the Rupee and increase in IT-related cost. However, despite the rise in expenses, the Bank was able to bring its cost to income ratio down to 31% from 38% in the corresponding period last year.
The Bank has entity ratings at ‘AAA/A-1+’ (Triple A/ A-One Plus) which denotes the highest credit quality with negligible risk factors with Stable outlook assigned by VIS Credit Rating Company Limited. Meezan Bank has been recognized as the Best Consumer Bank in Pakistan for 2022 and the Best Bank in Pakistan for 2018 & 2020 at the Pakistan Banking Awards – the most prestigious recognition in Pakistan’s banking sector. The Bank has also been recognized as the Best Islamic Retail Bank globally by Islamic Finance News of Redmoney Group, Malaysia. All these prestigious awards highlight the Bank’s position of excellence in the Banking industry.