The financial results of Banque du Caire revealed that the bank's profit before tax reached EGP 2.5bn in the first half (H1) of 2019, compared to EGP 1.91bn in H1 of 2018. The bank's net profit after tax rose to EGP 1.93bn against EGP 1bn, a growth rate of 94%, in the comparison period. According to the bank's financial statements, its total assets reached EGP 179bn in H1 of 2019, an increase of EGP 12bn (7%) compared to the end of last year. The bank's loan portfolio increased by about EGP 7bn to reach EGP 73bn, marking an increase of 10% compared to the end of 2018. The bank's loan portfolio includes corporate loans (up by 10%), retail loans (9.6% growth), small and medium enterprises (SME) loans (up by 14.7%), and micro loans (up by 30%). During H1 of 2019, the bank's deposit portfolio increased by about EGP 12bn to reach EGP 143bn, a growth of 9% compared to the end of 2018, and the ratio of loans to deposits increased to 51%, compared to 42%. The bank's positive results extended to net income, which increased by 45% compared to H1 of 2018, to reach EGP 4bn in H1 of 2019, in addition to the increase in the net profit margin to 5% compared to 4%. Net fees and commission income increased by 43% to EGP 668m. The bank also achieved an improvement in the efficiency ratio (expenses to income ratio) to 39% compared to 43%. According to Tarek Fayed, chairperson and CEO of Banque du Caire, the bank's continued positive results in H1 of 2019 clearly reflect the success of the bank's vision and strategy in reaching a new stage of development and innovation in its journey and moving forward towards achieving sustainable revenue from its banking operations based on many of the bank's strengths. Fayed pointed out that the remarkable progress in the results of the bank's work is the result of many actions, most notably the provision of the best financial products and diversified banking services, which witnessed a further digital transformation. Fayed affirmed the keenness of Banque du Caire to enhance and develop the corporate credit portfolio and syndicated loans, and to provide syndicated loans to major companies distributed across various economic sectors, through the provision of a full range of specialised banking solutions designed to suit the needs of customers. He noted that the growth in loans to corporates scored 10% by the end of June 2019 by lending 62 new companies. Fayed pointed out that the bank has restructured the finance and syndicated loans sector, which has a portfolio of EGP 15bn, adding that the bank secured many new funds to a large base of corporate clients in several sectors, such as transportation, electricity, petroleum, real estate development, food, and petrochemicals, in addition to providing new solutions to many corporate clients to manage liquidity, cash flow, finance of foreign trade operations, and centralised bookkeeping for companies and financial institutions. SME clients grew by 9% in H1 of 2019. The SME portfolio represents about 16% of the bank's total credit portfolio. The bank aims to reach the 20% target set by the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) before the end of 2019. Banque du Caire also has extensive experience in financing micro-projects, based on its leadership in this field, which extends for more than 16 years, which contributed to the creation of about 700,000 jobs and sustainable production projects serving various segments, including youth and female breadwinners. The bank's excellence in this area comes due to its geographical spread, especially in Upper Egypt governorates, which account for 55% of the total portfolio of the bank. Female clients account for 35% of the total number of customers at the bank.
