Scotiabank has reported a net income of C$1.984bn (£1.22bn) for the third quarter of 2019 that ended 31 July, an increase by 2.3% compared to C$1.94bn (£1.2bn) in the same period last year.
After adjusting for acquisition and amounts pertaining to divestitures, net income of the Canadian multi-national bank surged 9% to $2.45bn (£1.51bn).
Diluted earnings per share of the banking group in Q3 2019 were C$1.50 (£0.93), compared to C$1.55 (£0.96) in Q3 2018. On the other hand, return on equity came down from 13.1% in Q3 2018 to 11.5%.
Scotiabank’s total revenue for the third quarter 2019 was C$7.66bn (£4.73bn) compared to C$7.18bn (£4.43bn) in the year-ago period.
The bank’s Canadian banking unit registered net income of C$1.16bn (£720m) in the reported quarter compared to C$1.13bn (£700m) in the same quarter last year. The increase was mainly because of strong asset and deposit growth and the impact of acquisitions, said the bank.
Its international banking unit’s net income for Q3 2019 stood at C$902m (£556.43m) compared to the figure of C$475m (£293.02m) reported in Q3 2018. The growth in this segment was attributed mainly to higher net interest income resulting from strong loan growth in the Pacific Alliance countries, the impact made by acquisitions, higher non-interest income, and the positive effect of foreign currency translation, said the Canadian banking group.
The net income attributable to equity holders from the Global Banking and Markets business dropped by 15% to C$374m (£230.72m), compared to Q3 2018. According to the bank, the results in this segment were driven by reduced net interest income, higher non-interest expenses, and lower recovery of provision for credit losses, which were offset partially by the favourable impact of foreign currency translation, and lower income taxes.
Scotiabank CEO comments on the Q3 2019 results
Scotiabank president and CEO Brian Porter said: “Meaningful progress was made this quarter to reposition the Bank and simplify the operations. As a result, we are better positioned for growth in our key markets.
“We formalised agreements to reduce our investment in Thailand and announced the divestiture of our operations in Puerto Rico and US Virgin Islands. The repositioning of our international footprint is now substantially complete.”
