Sonali Bank records Tk5,634cr profit in 2024

Sonali Bank PLC posted Tk5,634 crore worth of operating profit in 2024 with its deposits also showing an uptrend.

The country's largest commercial bank has claimed that its EBIT (Earnings Before Interest and Tax) or operating profit would be the highest among all banks in the just-out calendar year.

The state-owned bank's operating profit was more than Tk1,788 crore higher than that of the previous year despite the difficulties, including dollar dearth, liquidity hardship and loan-related irregularities, and political instability, faced by the banking sector.

Sonali Bank Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer Md Shawkat Ali Khan shared the bank's financial performance for 2024 at a press briefing at the bank's Motijheel headquarters in Dhaka on Thursday.

He said the bank registered such a significant rise in its operating profit due to the growth in performing loans, a decrease in non-performing loans (NPLs), an expansion in SME loans and advances, and increased earnings from various services.

The bank's net interest income increased to Tk1,425 crore in 2024 from Tk476 crore in 2023.

The deposit portfolio also rose to Tk1,64,960 crore, while at the end of 2023, it was Tk1,50,618 crore, which is also the highest in the country's banking sector, Shawkat said.

The advance to deposit ratio (A/D) stood at 60.12% in 2023, which was slightly lower compared to previous years because of the instability in the political arena last year.