Bank of Kigali Registers Rwf23.3Bn Net Profit In 2017

Bank of Kigali Group – Rwanda’s largest bank by assets, has announced it made a net profit of Rwf23.3 billion ($27.3 million) in 2017.

This is nearly an increase of Rwf4 billion from last year’s net profit of Rwf20.8 billion ($25.7million) and Rwf20.5billion in 2015.

Announcing the statement to journalists this afternoon, BK CEO – Dr. Diane Karusisi said that the bank’s total assets for 2017 stood at Rwf727.2 billion.

This represents an increase from Rwf638.3 billion ($791 million) from the previous year.

With a total operating costs increasing by 14.6% to Rwf41.8 billion from 2016 and 2017 financials, Karusisi said that the bank refuted reports that attributed the increase to an ongoing downsizing on its staff, saying the bank plans on restructuring its operations.

“We actually did a human resource assessment and found out that we need to improve the Information technology department and this means we need more trained and qualified staff to hire” Karusisi said in an exclusive interview.

The 2018 Monetary Policy and Financial Stability Statement (MPFSS) shows that despite increment in banks assets and deposits for the financial year 2017, Rwandan banks had a very difficult year in recovering loans.

This also affected Bank of Kigali where it lost one percent on its loan – yielding to 16percent in 2017 compared to 17percent the previous year.

As a result, BK made net loan loss provisions of Rwf19.7billion last year compared to Rwf14.1billion in 2016.

Karusisi said that the bank had a great year and there are plans of focusing on other financial products (non-interest income which has grown by 30 percent) such as insurance to give the bank another avenue of making money in other sustainable forms.

“We are doing a risky business but we have a side that is growing, which is good for our investors. We have the insurance sector that is producing positive results and tech business which is not contributing positively but has a good prospectus” Karusisi said.

Last year, Bank of Kigali, a stock-listed company, moved to become an investment group.

The bank closed the year with 257,000 Retail customers and 24,000 corporate clients; expanded the Agency Banking Network to 1,437 agents and processed over 398,000 transactions; with 79 branches, 91Automated Teller Machines (ATM) and 1,250 Points of Payment (POS) terminals that accepted most international cards including VISA & MasterCard.

This made its retail clients’ balances and deposits reach Rwf113.7 billion as at 31 December 2017; and corporate clients’ balances and deposits were Rwf240.8 billion in the same period.

“Our shareholders and investors will be happy with the sustainability of the Bank’s results and financial position. The Bank has diversified its growth by venturing into other financial related services in line with the universal financial services model,” Said Marc Holtzman, Chairman of the Board of Bank of Kigali Group.

In the meantime, BK Group’s performance has picked interest of Moroccan Kingdom which is currently in talk to buy majority shares, and according to Karusisi as these discussions are yet to bare fruits the bank will not expand in the region but focus on the local market.