During the BOV's 41st Annual General Meeting, shareholders approved a final gross dividend of €0.0925 per share. The Board's recommendation of a bonus issue of 1 share for every 11 shares held was also approved. This will result in an increase of the permanent capital to €360 million.
In his address, BOV Chairman John Cassar White expressed satisfaction at the level of performance achieved by the Bank during a challenging year, characterized with historically low interest rates, significant regulatory changes which brought with them increasing regulatory and supervisory costs and rising geo-political risks in North Africa and Eastern Europe. During his intervention, he also made reference to the Bank's participation in the Comprehensive Assessment carried out by the European Central Bank (ECB), explaining that the result of this exercise re-affirmed that the BOV Group capital base exceeds the regulatory capital requirement, even under a hypothetical stress scenario.
The Bank's Chairman commented that for the year ending 30th September 2014, the Bank registered a pre-tax profit of €104.1 million compared to the €115.8 million achieved in the previous year. He further explained that, the Bank's core operating profit, which excludes fair value movements and profits from associated companies, increased marginally to €87.9 million. Mr Cassar White explained that capital management remains one of the Bank's top priorities. He said that notwithstanding the transition during the year to the tougher CRD IV capital requirements, BOV managed to register a CET1 ratio of 11.7% on a CRD IV basis whilst its total capital ratio stood at 14.5%.
The BOV Chairman also explained the restructuring of the BOV Management Board, saying that the main objective is that of ensuring greater focus which will enable the Bank to be more efficient in dealing with future challenges.
In his concluding remarks, Mr Cassar White highlighted the fact that the Bank's stability and sustainability have been put as the most important items on the Bank's Board of Directors' agenda with the objective of safeguarding Malta's largest financial institution for the long term.
The Bank's Chief Exective Officer, Charles Borg gave a detailed analysis of the factors that had a marked impact on the Bank's financial performance.
In his analysis of the results, Charles Borg said that Bank of Valletta managed to consolidate its position as the Bank of Choice for customer deposits, which reached an all-time high of €7.1 billion, while also succeeding in increasing its credit portfolio by 5%.
During his speech, Mr Borg outlined the several initiatives being undertaken by the Bank with a view to ensure that it remains relevant and customer-driven in the years to come. Amongst the most important items mentioned were the restructuring of the Bank's credit function, the development of a robust IT architecture which will closely align the Bank's IT strategy with the needs of the business and the review of the Bank's investments structure and the international corporate business function. He also explained the Bank's commitment towards the SME market which was rendered more tangible with the launch of the BOV for SMEs and BOV Start Plus, both focusing on providing accessible financing to SMEs and micro-enterprises.
"The Bank's long-term strategy rests on prudence, innovation and good corporate governance. Long term sustainability remains a strategic objective, with its conservative business model and prudent policies continuing to serve well," explained Mr Borg. Whilst expressing his gratitude to the Chairman and Executive Team, Charles Borg stressed that the Bank remains committed to reciprocate its customers' loyalty by continuing to evolve and remain the Bank of Choice for its customers, both retail and corporate.
Following the Chairman's and the CEO's address, four resolutions were put to the meeting. These resolutions included approval of the Profit and Loss Account and Balance Sheet for the year ended 30 September 2014, and the Directors' and Auditors' Reports. In addition, a gross final dividend of €0.0925 per share, which represents a gross payment of € 30,525,000 as recommended by the Directors, was approved for payment on the 18th December 2014.
Approval was also obtained to increase the issued share capital of the Bank to €360 million following capitalisation of €30 million from retained earnings for the purpose of a bonus issue of 1 share for every 11 shares held on the 16 January 2015.
An election of Directors was held at the Annual General Meeting.
Shareholders attending the Bank of Valletta annual general meeting at the Hilton have elected the following directors:
- Alicia Agius Gatt
- Joseph Borg
- James Grech
- Mario Grima
- George Portanier
- Joseph M Zrinzo
Both Chairman John Cassar White and Taddeo Scerri were appointed by the Government until the 2015 AGM.