TARGET:Bank to reactivate mortgage facility

Commercial Bank of Rwanda (BCR) has projected a surge in profit after tax in the first quarter of this year, compared to the same period last year.The bank’s Managing Director, Sanjeev Anand, told journalists at a news briefing on Friday, that their earnings increased to Rwf3 billion ($5,042,016 million), last year, from Rwf2.7 billion ($4,537,815 million) in 2010.The bank projects Rwf3.5 billion net earnings this year."The bank attributes the healthy growth to the increased products on the market and more distribution channels,” Anand noted.He added that the bank’s loan book increased by 35 per cent, from Rwf28 billion in 2010, to Rwf37 billion, last year.The bank managed to ease its Non Performing Loans to 5.6 per cent as of December last year, compared to 20 per cent in 2010. The National Bank of Rwanda requires at least 7 per cent NPL from commercial banks.BCR projects to grow its loan portfolio, this year, between 35 percent to 40 and a savings deposit of 15 per cent."In order to achieve this, we propose to introduce a number of new products and initiatives into the market this year,” Anand explained.He disclosed that the lender projects to grow its profit after tax by 10 per cent this year, compared to 2011.The bank’s profit after tax for the financial year 2011 grew from Rwf2.7 billion, in 2010 to Rwf3 billion last year.The loan portfolio grew from Rwf28 billion to Rwf37.6 billion in 2011.According to Anand, the bank will, next month, revamp its mortgage product particularly targeting the low income earners.