Meezan Bank records good growth in first quarter 2013

May 2nd, 2013

The Board of Directors of Meezan Bank approved the financial statements of the Bank for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 in its meeting held at Dubai on April 30, 2013. H. E. Sheikh Ebrahim Bin Khalifa Al-Khalifa, Chairman of the Board presided the meeting that was also attended by Mr. Abdullateef A. Al-Asfour, (Vice Chairman) and other Directors.

Meezan Bank recorded 9% growth in its Profit-after-tax which increased to Rs. 982 million compared to Rs. 903 million earned in the corresponding period of 2012. The Earnings per Share of the Bank increased to Rs. 0.98 (March 2012: Rs. 0.90) on the enhanced share capital of Rs. 10 billion. Deposits of the Bank grew to Rs. 235 billion as at March 31, 2013 (Dec 2012: Rs 230 billion)

The increase in profit has been achieved despite the monetary easing of 400 basis points by the State Bank of Pakistan during the last eighteen months. The Bank’s share capital increased to Rs. 10 billion with the issuance of 11% bonus shares approved by the shareholders in the Bank’s 17th Annual General Meeting held on March 28, 2013. Accordingly, Meezan Bank has met SBP minimum capital of Rs. 10 billion required to be completed by December 2013, a year in advance.

The JCR-VIS Credit Rating Company Limited, an affiliate of Japan Credit Rating Agency, Japan has maintained the Bank’s long-term entity rating at AA- (Double A Minus) and short term rating at A1+ (A One Plus) with stable outlook. The short-term rating of A1+ is the highest standard in short-term rating. The rating indicates sound performance indicators of the Bank.

Meezan Bank’s is Pakistan’s 8th largest bank in terms of branch network, with 313 branches in 91 cities of the country. The Bank has been consistently recognized as the best Islamic Bank in Pakistan by various local and international institutions over the past several years.