The Banking Executive Magazine, Issue 154, October 2021

National Bank of Kuwait NATIONAL BANK OF KUWAIT'S Q3 NET PROFIT UP 63% TO $312MLN National Bank of Kuwait, the coun- try's biggest lender, on Monday re- ported a 63 percent surge in third-quarter net profit, as the econ- omy recovered from the pandemic- imposed restrictions and business confidence lifted. For the quarter, it made a net profit of 94.1 million dinar ($311.8 mil- lion), up from 57.6 million dinar it made in the year-ago period, NBK said in a statement recently. For the nine-month period ended September 30, the lender saw a 51 percent rise in net profit to 254.8 mil- lion dinars compared with 168.7 million dinars in the previous period. Total loans and advances grew by 7.5 percent year-on-year to 19 billion dinar while customer deposits fell slightly to 17.4 billion dinars. NBK group chairman Nasser Al- Sayer said he expected rising con- sumer spending and growth in household credit, one of the main drivers of Kuwait’s economic recov- ery, to continue. He added that the ongoing national dialogue between the government and the parliament "in a bid to lessen tensions and resolve legislative im- passe may improve economic reform prospects; including restructuring the public sector, expediting the privati- zation process and paving the way for crucial approval of several laws." the BANKING EXECUTIVE 16 ISSUE 154 OCTOBER 2021