Debub Global Bank, one of the youngest in the industry, has registered a 39pc growth in profit during the past fiscal year. Its profit growth was well above the 2019 industry average of 32pc.

The net profit of the Bank grew to 292 million Br, leading its earnings per share (EPS) to expand by 7.4pc to 347 Br. During the past fiscal year, the EPS of many financial institutions has dropped.

This is a remarkable performance, according to Abdulmenan Mohammed, a financial statement analyst based in London.

"The shareholders should be delighted about earning above the industry average," he said.

Asebe Melaku, who joined the Bank as a founding shareholder after a tip-off from a friend, is well satisfied with its performance in the past fiscal year. He joined Debub Global eight years back with 10,000 Br worth of shares, and the value of his shares has now reached over 300,000 Br after additional investments.

Yet Asebe says that the Bank needs to work hard as it will face stiff competition in the coming years.

“More new banks are joining the sector,” he said. “There are even banks with under formation status that have a paid-up capital higher than Debub Global.”

Over the past year and a half, over a dozen banks have started the formation process and one of them, ZamZam, has secured an operational license. Goh, Hijira and Ahadu banks are among those that have already held establishment general assemblies.

In contrast to the exciting news for Debub Global shareholders, the central bank suspended the dividend payments until some outstanding issues related to letters of credit (LC) the Bank has previously approved are cleared up. Currently, the Bank and the external auditor are working on the issue, according to Tesfaye Boru (PhD), president of the Bank.

"The process won't bring a major change on the balance sheet," he said. "And I hope it'll be cleared up very soon."

Debub Global's balance sheet has expanded significantly. Its interest on loans, advances and NBE bills soared by 62.2pc to 521.7 million Br. Its income from foreign exchange dealings showed a significant spike of 178pc to 213 million Br. Service charges and commissions increased by 23.3pc to 275.8 million Br, while other operating income reached 241 million Br, registering a 119.4pc growth.

Nuredin Awol, the Bank's board chairperson, attributed the renewed commitment, organised resources, and strategy for the positive financial and operational performances.

"Our elevated commitment to broaden customer service and improve service quality has led us to engage in aggressive branch expansion, diversifying banking channels, broadening product assortment and adopting modern IT," Nuredin remarked.

Achieving a significant increase in foreign exchange income while other banks witnessed a significant drop in this business area is an impressive feat, according to Abdulmenan, who says that the management should take credit.