May 2010 Financial News

ANSA Merchant declares $193m in after-tax profit

May 26, 2010

In reporting that ANSA Merchant Bank Ltd made a 2009 after-tax profit of $193 million, its managing director Chip Sa Gomes said the bank is “a top performer” compared to its competitors in the financial sector. “The profit attributable to shareholders is $193.3 million, which corresponds to earnings per share of $2.30 in 2009, which is 283 per cent better than what was given in 2008, which was $0.60,” Sa Gomes said.

He said the balance sheet remained “strong” with a consolidated asset base of $4.8 billion, “which is just under ten per cent year-on-year.”
Asked what would have caused ANSA Merchant to perform badly in 2008, Sa Gomes said there was a change in the accounting standards. “The main feature that affected our financial performance in 2008 was that we were impacted by the adoption of new accounting standards that made us account for unrealised losses. Comparing the bank to its peers in the financial sector, Sa Gomes said ANSA Merchant Bank did well.

“In the financial sector, you have other banks and financial service-related companies. The comparison that we did, just to see how we were doing in the industry—we looked at Scotiabank, First Citizens and all the companies that publish their accounts in the newspapers. We looked at the return on assets and the return on equity ratios and we had a better performance in 2009,” Sa Gomes said. Success depended on how the companies are managed, Sa Gomes said. “I don’t think any of the companies, ourselves included, have the majority of their investments abroad. I think most of the companies, their financial success would depend on how the companies are managed, the positions that they are carrying and the relative performance in the given year.

“It will be somewhat influenced by foreign performance, but it will also be more prominently impacted by local and regional conditions,” he said. With confidence in the international economy resuming, Sa Gomes believes that financial institutions in T&T would have benefitted from this confidence in 2009 compared to 2008. Regarding the operational side of the business, he said it did better in 2009. “There was the additive effect of a bouyant investment climate in 2009 compared to a negative effect in 2008 that really made the difference,” he said.


Source:
NADALEEN SINGH
Trinidad Guardian
Wednesday May 26, 2010

http://guardian.co.tt/business/business/2010/05/26/ansa-merchant-declares-193m-after-tax-profit