Kuwait City, Kuwait–Gulf Bank has revealed that the Central Bank of Kuwait (CBK) has approved its plan to increase its issued and paid-up capital by $79.6 million through a public offering with rights issue of 260,869,565 new shares.
The offering will be at a nominal value of 100 fils, in addition to a share premium of 130 fils for each share, resulting in an increase in the bank’s capital base by about KD 60 million, the bank said in a disclosure posted on the Boursa Kuwait’s website.
The bank will disclose all details and procedures related to the share issue after obtaining all the required approvals from the Capital Markets Authority (CMA), according to the disclosure.
The move will also lead to the enhancement of the bank’s regulatory capital ratios, it added.
Established in 1960 and listed on the Boursa Kuwait in 1984 with an authorized capital of around KD 486 million (around USD 1.4 billion), the Gulf Bank runs all banking activities.
In April this year, Gulf Bank reported a net profit of KD 17.3 million ($56.50 million), an increase of KD 2.3 million or 15 percent compared to 2022 first three months net profit of KD 15 million.
The bank’s return on assets improved from 0.9 percent in the first quarter of 2022 to 1 percent for the first quarter of 2023 and return on equity grew from 9.2 percent to 9.9 percent.
Gulf Bank recorded an operating income of KD 46.4 million for the first three months of 2023, and an operating profit before provisions of KD 25 million for the same period.
The increase in the net profit was mainly driven by a 12 percent or KD 4.9 million increase in operating income supported by a noticeable enhancement in net interest income of 8 percent or KD 2.6 million and non-interest income of 24 percent or KD 2.3 million compared to first quarter 2022, the bank said in a statement.