May 2023 
Ms. Lubna S. Olayan, Chair of the Board of Directors of SAB الأول highlighted the Bank’s financial results for the first quarter of 2023, with profits increasing year-on-year by 76% to SAR1.8bn and total operating income increasing by 60% to SAR3.2bn – both records for the Bank.
Ms. Olayan commented “SAB الأول has continued its growth along the trajectory on which the Bank ended 2022. Loan growth across our retail and corporate businesses was exceptional, and in line with the market, and the corporate, retail and treasury businesses each showed strong revenue growth, while we continued to improve our banking offering through continued digital transformation.”
On the recent re-branding of the Bank, Ms. Olayan commented “While the new name – SABالأول reflects a long history and legacy of firsts in the Kingdom, the new name most importantly represents a genuine desire to put customers first by prioritizing their aspirations and ambitions.” Ms. Olayan further stated “I am incredibly proud to see the Bank enter this next phase of our evolution under the new branding and name.”
On financial performance, Ms. Olayan noted that “the key financial performance indicators are all in line with plan. Revenue of SAR3.2bn – a record for the Bank – was driven by strong net special commission income generation from increasing volumes and higher rates, improved fee and exchange income, and higher trading income as we took advantage of certain positions in our investment portfolio, while continuing to position it for potential cuts in benchmark rates. Costs were well managed, our cost efficiency ratio fell, asset quality remained strong and we saw a fall in our non-performing loans ratio. All of this resulted in improving returns, generating a 15.9% return on tangible equity for the first quarter.”
Growing the customer lending portfolio is a key strategic focus, and the Bank saw 4% growth in loans. Ms. Olayan commented “our corporate business remains strong and we saw growth across a number of sectors, with activity related to some of the landmark Vision 2030 giga projects continuing at pace, which bodes well for our future pipeline. Our retail business also had a strong first quarter with 4% growth in total balances driven by robust mortgage origination activity, leading to an increase in our origination market share and hence an increase of 6% in our portfolio.”
Finally, Ms. Olayan added “I would like to thank our customers for their trust, the senior management team and all employees for achieving such a solid start to the year, providing a solid foundation on which to continue to build and grow. Our collaboration with HSBC continues to go from strength to strength, and I remain appreciative for their dedication and commitment to SAB الأول,.Finally, I would like to thank SAMA, the Capital Markets Authority and the other supportive Saudi government agencies, including the Ministry of Finance, for their continued and unwavering support and direction.
Summary of results:
- 1Q23 profit of SAR 1,765 million up 76% on 1Q22
- 1Q23 total operating income of SAR 3,218 million up 60% on 1Q22
- 1Q23 net customer advances of SAR 191,001 million up 8% on 1Q22 and up 4% on 4Q22
- 1Q23 customer deposits of SAR 225,983 million up 17% on 1Q22 and up 5% on 4Q22
- 1Q23 shareholders’ equity of SAR 57,034 million up 6% on 1Q22 and up 4% on 4Q22
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