YEREVAN, September 14. /ARKA/. The Yerevan-based Unibank said its operating profit in the first seven months of 2017 (before making contribution to the reserve funds) showed an outstripping growth reaching 3.4 billion drams, exceeding the figure for the same time span of 2016 by a factor of 1.5. The record growth was achieved due to increased efficiency and improved financial results in all business segments, the bank said.

According to IFRS accounts, Unibank’s net interest income increased by almost 10% as a result of its improved position in the retail lending and SME segments. The net non-interest income showed a significant growth too having increased by 110%.

Gohar Grigoryan, Unibank’s Financial Director and Board Member, said the increase in interest and non-interest income was driven by the growing lending, properly diversified portfolio for business areas and client segments, as well as by higher operating efficiency and improved profitability ratios.

"We will continue the focus on improving the quality of the bank's assets, the procedure for assessing the creditworthiness of borrowers and optimizing the risk management system. Intense profit growth is the result of the implementation of our Strategic Plan until 2020, designed to increase retail lending by 44% and corporate lending by 37%," Grigoryan said.

The international rating agency Moody's Investors Service in 2017 approved the rating of Unibank at B2 level; the outlook is stable.

Unibank was founded in October 2001. In 2002, the bank introduced the Unistream system. The main shareholder of the bank is UNIHOLDING GG LIMITED. In 2015 the bank was reorganized into an open joint-stock company. -0-