Arab News, Wednesday, Jun 07, 2023 | Thul-Qidah 18, 1444
Top Saudi banks maintain profitability in Q1 despite global headwinds: Alvarez & Marsal
Saudi Arabia:
Saudi Arabia’s top banks have continued to register steady earnings growth while
maintaining profitability despite global headwinds amid rising interest rates,
according to global professional services firm Alvarez & Marsal.
The analysis by the New York-headquartered company
revealed the Kingdom’s leading 10 banks collectively recorded 2.7 percent
quarter-on-quarter growth in net profits during the first three months of the
year to hit SR17.3 billion ($4.61 billion).
The report noted that the boost in profitability
was driven by significant growth in non-core income and a rise in cost
efficiencies.
The Saudi banks managed to enhance and maintain
the return on equity well above the pre-pandemic levels as their aggregate RoE
increased by 67 basis points to 15.2 percent in the first quarter against the
previous three months.
Their return on assets remained stable at 2
percent, with average total assets growing by 3.7 percent during the same
period, the report noted.
“We consider the Saudi banks’ capital position to
be strong. Profitability for the quarter marginally improved due to an increase
in operating income, mainly owing to a growth in non-core income which was
further supported by higher impairments,” said Asad Ahmed, managing director and
head of Middle East financial services at Alvarez & Marsal, in a statement.
He noted the higher interest rate environment is
causing customers to migrate to interest-bearing instruments that could likely
affect the cost of funding for some banks in the coming months.
“Looking ahead, we expect banks to face a slowdown
in credit growth and a possible uptick in non-performing loans due to the higher
interest rate environment. Saudi Central Bank has maintained its interest rates
in line with the US Federal Reserve, and we expect this to continue,” added
Ahmed.
The report further revealed that Saudi banks
recorded a 4.7 percent growth in deposits and a 3.2 percent rise in loans and
advances.
Highlighting the growth of the private sector in
the Kingdom, the analysis found that retail loans and corporate loans witnessed
a quarter-on-quarter growth of 2 percent and 4.2 percent, respectively.
The report further pointed out that the net
interest margin of these top banks in Saudi Arabia during the first quarter
remained stable at 3.08 percent, although it is slightly down from the 3.15
percent recorded in the previous three-month period.
Saudi Arabia’s top 10 listed banks analyzed in the
report include Saudi National Bank, Al Rajhi Bank, and Riyad Bank, as well as
Saudi British Bank, Banque Saudi Fransi, and Arab National Bank.
The other banks examined by Alvarez & Marsal were
Alinma Bank, Bank Albilad, Saudi Investment Bank, and Bank Aljazira.
The analysis looked at these banks’ key
performance areas, including size, liquidity, income, operating efficiency,
risk, profitability, and capital.