18th Feb 2016 08:41
LONDON (Alliance News) - JSC TBC Bank on Thursday reported a jump in fourth quarter profit, boosting earnings for 2015, as the Georgian bank named Barclays Bank PLC as the financial advisor to handle its move to a premium listing on the London Stock Exchange's Main Market.
With the bank planning to complete the premium listing process in the second half of 2016, it claimed to have updated the way it reports and provisions for non-performing loans, in order to meet international best practice.
"The updated methodology allows for a more granular analysis of the loan portfolio and a better assessment of provisioning requirements as well as NPLs," the bank said.
TBC Bank's plan for a premium listing would see it join BGEO Group PLC, the holding company for Bank of Georgia, which already boasts that status and is a member of the FTSE 250 index. TBC Bank currently has global depositary receipts on the LSE and a market capitalisation of GBP310 million.
The update came as TBC Bank said fourth-quarter pretax profit rose by 62% to GEL74.3 million year on year, contributing to a 36% increase in annual profit to GEL247.9 million.
TBC Bank updated its medium-term guidance, meaning it now targets a ratio of costs to income of less than 40%, having "already surpassed" a previous aim of a ratio of less than 45%.
"As it stands now, we are well positioned to benefit from the growth possibilities that are unfolding in Georgia. As proved in the past year, we remain resilient to changing market conditions and are delivering against our strategic targets," Chief Executive Vakhtang Butskhrikidze said.
"I am confident that we are on the right track to sustain this progress and continue to create value for our shareholders through our focus on profitability, strong capital base and sound corporate responsibility," Butskhrikidze added.
By Samuel Agini; [email protected]; @samuelagini
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