On the back of an increase in interest and fee-based income, ABN Amro Bank has recorded a growth of 59 per cent in its net earnings to Rs 385.35 crore in 2006-07, as compared to Rs 241.68 crore in the previous year.

The overall turnover of the bank increased by 36 per cent to Rs 32,077 crore as against Rs 23,539 crore in the corresponding period of the last year.

Advances climbed up 22 per cent to Rs 18,387 crore (Rs 15,073 crore), whereas depository income augmented 34.85 per cent to Rs 15,998.30 crore (Rs 11,863.77 crore). Total income ascended by 52.23 per cent to Rs 3,027 crore (Rs 1,988 crore), while other income boosted 23 per cent to Rs 753 crore (Rs 612 crore).

Romesh Sobti, the executive vice-president and country representative ABN Amro Bank stated that there had been an alteration in the revenue mix.

“A few years back, the advances portfolio was mainly skewed towards retail. However, non-retail areas like SME and corporate business have now gone up substantially. This is a healthy mix and we would like to maintain it,” Mr. Sobti added.

At present, retail business explicates 58 per cent of revenues and about 30 per cent of net profit. The bank has over 15 lakh retail customers, and its overall realty exposure stood at Rs 3,500 crore, as compared to Rs 2,300 crore in the last financial.

Home loans made Rs 2,274 crore as against Rs 1,798 crore, in the last financial. The bank had four lakh borrowers under microfinance and the outstanding portfolio stood at Rs 162 crore. But, its NPA-advances ratio remained low at 0.12 per cent.

The bank upped its provisions and contingencies by 86.13 per cent to Rs 633 crore (Rs 340.25 crore) due to higher standard asset provisions stipulated by the Reserve Bank of India.

In the year ended March, the bank accepted capital mix of Rs 725 crore that raised its capital adequacy ratio (CAR) to 11.34 per cent as on March 31, 2007 from 10.44 per cent in the same period of the corresponding year.

Mr. Sobti also said that besides big deals, various smaller deals were going on between India and Europe, mainly in the Belgim, UK and the Netherlands.