Hatton National Bank PLC has delivered total asset growth of 11.2% and a profit of Rs 16.5 billion for the year ended December 31, 2017.
This is while driving the Bank’s digital transformation and improving the funding structure of the Group. HNB is the fifth largest by market capitalization on the Colombo Stock Exchange and the combined market capitalisation on voting and non-voting shares stood at Rs 116.5 billion at the close of the year. It remains the most diversified group within the financial services sector with group companies engaged in insurance, investment banking and microfinance complementing growth, said Rienzie Arseculeratne, Chairman of HNB.
The Bank’s economic impact is significant, accounting for 9.3% of the assets in the banking sector and 10.1% of loans and advances in the banking industry. It has contributed Rs 10.6 billion as taxes during 2017 while investing Rs 198.6 billion in government securities.
The Group is one of the largest players in SME and Microfinance through the Bank and its subsidiary HNB Grameen, supporting the country’s goals on financial inclusion, capacity building and access to finance.
HNB’s performance is commendable considering the challenging macro environment that prevailed in 2017. The effects of climate change on agriculture and agriculture based industries with knock-on effects on other industries, are reflected in GDP growth which moderated to 3.3% in the third quarter of 2017. The Bank has strengthened its credit risk management processes and set up a Centre of Aspiration to improve recovery processes, supporting improvement of this key indicator. Sector deposits reflected strong growth during the year as high interest rates attracted increased fixed deposits resulting in a decrease of the CASA ratio.
In this backdrop, HNB’s growth in current and saving accounts (CASA) affirming its strong domestic franchise reinforced by a sales culture and a relevant NB’s own capital adequacy ratios improved from 13.7% to 17% during the year as funding structures improved, strongly supported by the issue of rights and retained earnings.
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