NBK Records Net Profits of $152m in Q1-2005 The National Bank of Kuwait (NBK), the country’s largest bank and the top-rated Arab bank, posted net profits of $152m in the first quarter of 2005, compared to $108m in the same period last year. NBK’s CEO explained that the growth in profits was achieved amid a strategy of diversification in the sources of income, prudent risk management and meeting evolving customer needs across all segments through the introduction of new high-quality services. The bank’s total assets reached $18.9bn at end-2004, while shareholders’ equity amounted to $1.91bn. In turn, NBK’s return on equity (RoE) and return on assets (RoA) stood at 32% and 3.3% respectively, among the highest worldwide. ANB Posts 33% Growth in Net Profits in Q1-2005 Saudi Arabia’s Arab National Bank (ANB), the sixth largest listed bank in terms of market capitalisation ($10.6bn), posted net profits of $96.5m in the