NBS loan disbursement grew in 2008 – Annual Report

May 06, 2009 News

…mortgage portfolio increased by 12%

The New Building Society’s mortgage loan disbursement for 2008 was the highest in five years, according to the entity’s 2008 Annual Report.
The report stated that in 2008, some 3,870 mortgage loans were disbursed, as compared to 2,983 in 2007; 3,187 in 2006; 2,720 in 2005 and 2,704 in 2004.
According to the report, gross mortgage advances for the year were $3.9B, the highest achieved in any one year of the Society’s history.
It also stated that at December 31, 2008, the mortgage portfolio increased by 12 per cent over the previous year to $19B, representing 53 per cent of total assets.
Total Assets, the report added, increased to six per cent – $35.6B – while liquid assets totaled $14B representing 47 per cent of total savings.
Chief Executive Officer, Ahmad Khan, in his report, said that this is an indication that the Society has positioned itself to meet the demands of any unforeseen circumstances.
He also said that gross reserves totaled $4.8B, representing an increase of six per cent over the previous year and 16 per ent of Members’ funds.
“Our reserves continue to grow and serve as a buffer against any unforeseen expenses that may be incurred by the Society.”
The report also said that net interest for the year 2008 was favourable, at $882M, as compared with $805M for the previous year, while general administrative expenses totaled $346M, an increase of only 2.7 per cent over the previous year.
Meanwhile, NBS made a profit of $288M in 2008 despite the global financial meltdown, which had a crippling effect on the international banking sector.
Based on the report, this was a significant decline since in 2007 the profit was $392M, and in 2006 it was $400M.
However, mortgage loan disbursement for the year grew from 2,983 in 2007 to 3,870 in 2008.
According to Chairman, Nanda Gopaul’s report, the massive depreciation of the Pound Sterling, resulted in an exchange loss of $200M on their investments in the United Kingdom, which are held by them for several decades.
He also said that there was an exchange gain of $130M in the two previous years, as a result of the high exchange rates which prevailed for the Pound Sterling for those years.
Khan said that had it not been for the exchange loss, the total profit for 2008 would have been in the vicinity of $488M.
However, Gopaul said that the profit for last year can be considered reasonable given the fact that the money market suffered immensely as a result of the financial meltdown and currency fluctuation in economies around the world.
“Despite the society’s returns for the year and our setbacks, due to the devaluation of the pound sterling, our objectives remain to ensure that both our borrowing and saving members benefit optimally from the products and services that are offered by us.”
He added that with their core business being to provide mortgages on affordable terms, they have further reduced their rates to borrowers from January 1, this year to 6.95 per cent and 4.95 per cent (in the case of low income loans) to make their repayment more affordable.
Gopaul noted that savings also grew by six per cent and is currently $30.5B or 86 per cent of Total Assets, a percentage which has been stable over the years and which demonstrates the overwhelming confidence the majority of members has placed in the system.
Assets, he pointed out, grew by six per cent for the year and is currently $35.6B, while the reserves stood at $4.8B, representing 13 per cent of Total Assets or 16 per cent of members’ funds.
“This ratio is ranked among the highest in the financial sector, and will of course serve us well should there be any unforeseen expenses that the Society may incur in the future.”
According to him, growth in the various areas of the Society is accompanied by strict monitoring of our total operations which allowed them to remain financially sound during 2008.

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NBS loan disbursement grew in 2008 – Annual Report

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