NAIROBI, Kenya, Nov 16 – National Bank of Kenya (NBK) profit after tax dropped by Sh286 million to Sh886 million in the third-quarter ending September 30 2022, on increased operating costs.
The lender had posted a Sh1.17 billion net profit in the same period last year.
Profit dropped after total operating costs, excluding provisions at Sh6.5 billion, increased by 12 per cent from Q3 2021, driven by increased investments in cybersecurity, strategic bank projects to enhance operational excellence and customer experience such as Internet and agency banking platforms.
NBK Acting Managing Director Peter Kioko said the result reflects the Bank’s continued investments in key areas of technology and operational excellence for future growth.
“We remain focused on providing an enabling environment, especially for the MSME sector to continue to thrive by tailoring solutions to suit their need,” Kioko said.
“Going forward, we are focused on supporting our customers across the wide branch network and footprint and in the various sectors to enable them to achieve their aspirations,” he added.
In the period, net interest income grew 14 per cent to Sh6.9 billion.
It was contributed by interest income, which grew by 12 per cent to Sh9.9 billion, owing to increased volumes of loans and advances as well as improved level of recoveries.
On the balance sheet side, total assets declined by 4 per cent to Sh140 billion, mainly from reduced government securities as customer deposits reduced by 6 per cent mainly driven by corporate deposits.
“Going into the future, we remain optimistic with regard to overall macro-economic outlook and therefore, as NBK, we are keen to leverage on strategic partnerships to support businesses and our individual customers in their growth priorities,” he added.
