Republic Bank records $815M profits

According to the bank’s figures for the year ended September 30, 2005, its Trinidad and Tobago operations accounted for 48.6 percent of the group’s profit before tax.

The group’s asset base has continued to grow, with total assets of $31.5 billion; $3 billion greater than recorded for the same period last year, the bank said in a press statement.

The group’s return on assets for this year is 2.71 percent, compared to 2.44 percent for September 2004. Return on Equity is 20.73 percent at September 2005, when compared to 18.93 percent for the previous year.

According to the bank’s chairman, Ronald Harford, the results are impacted by a number of significant items — the increase in value of its shareholding in FirstCaribbean International Bank (FCIB) of $236 million, the recent reduction in corporate taxes resulting in a write back of deferred tax of $53 million, and the write-off of goodwill of $124 million on investment in the Dominican Republic.

Additionally, he said, as a result of the restructuring of the Grenada government debt, the bank sustained an impairment expense of $70 million.

Excluding these non-recurring items, the group’s performance for 2005 was 8.55 percent better than last year, he said. The bank said its board of directors has declared a final dividend of $1.48 (2004:$1.30) bringing the total dividend for the year to September 30, 2005, to $2.25 (2004: $2). This final dividend will be paid on December 2, 2005, the statement said.