The bank in a statement said these landmark achievements were made possible due to its new state-of-the-art core banking system and introducing new deliver channels including the opening of two new branches and three additional offsite ATMs in the first half the year.
The bank also announced its financial results for the half year ended 30th June 2011 with strengthening its network within the country through the launch of a full service branch in Hamala and two offsite ATMs, and introduced several customer-focused promotions within its retail offering to enhance its customer offering.
The results reflect a loss after provisions of BD3.47 million for the quarter as compared to a loss of BD8.83 million during the same period in 2010 and a net loss of BD5.16 million for the first half of the year as compared to a loss of BD7.93 million during the corresponding period in 2010.
“In line with our strategy of developing a stronger retail and commercial banking business that will deliver on our commitment to provide customers with unique and innovative financial products and services, we rolled out several initiatives during the first half of the year,” Jamal Al-Hazeem, Chief Executive Officer of BMI Bank said.
“Our flagship savings scheme revised under a new name ‘Ayadi’, and with an increased prize pool of $1.66 million received tremendous response from customers with the portfolio registering a phenomenal 472% growth as compared to the average growth during the same period in previous years. Our customer base too has seen a positive growth of 23% since the launch of our new state-of-the-art core banking system with a 7% increase in the number of accounts opened. Our overall customer deposits have seen a healthy growth of 5% since the start of the year,” he added.
“Our credit card promotional campaign offering customers the opportunity to win fabulous vacation packages including a Cruise and a European holiday as well as cash when they use their credit cards on ordinary purchases has also been well received as evidenced by a 44% increase in card usage as compared to the first quarter of the year. In addition, we have seen a gradual increase in customers using our innovative ePayment gateway that offers them a safe and secure environment in which to pay their credit card bills without having to visit a branch. These along with other customer-centric initiatives have helped in reinforcing our credo of being ‘Better, together’,” he said.
“Although we haven’t seen a significant deterioration in the Bank’s wholesale book during the first half of this year, we have retained our conservative and prudent approach and have increased provisions on exposures which have not performed as expected. Our results reflect these non-cash charges resulting in a net loss of BD 5.16 million for the first half of 2011,” he said.
“However, at BMI Bank, we still maintain an excellent Capital Adequacy ratio at 19% with strong liquidity and a portfolio of unique and innovative products and services. Our business is well positioned for cautious yet steady growth and we look forward to the future with optimism whilst continuing to invest in our people, brand, product and services. We will continue to seek growth organically whilst investing in and growing our franchises to maintain the strong momentum built during the year.”