Awash, first private bank to top 1 Billion Birr gross profit

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – In its 22 years of operations, Awash International Bank Share Company has become the first private bank in Ethiopia to surpass the one billion birr mark to register a little over one billion birr gross profit in the just ended fiscal year also becoming the most profitable private bank in Ethiopia.

Awash is the first among the private banking industry in Ethiopia to open its doors in 1994 following the liberalization of the banking industry in Ethiopia at the start of the 25-year tenure of the government led by the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). According to sources, the bank has managed to make a gross profit of 1,004,639,000 birr before tax during the concluded fiscal year.

This year’s profit is 134.8 million birr more than last year’s (869.7 million birr) making Awash the top private commercial bank in Ethiopia. Last year, it was Dashen Bank—the other giant private bank—that topped the list grossing 980 million birr in profits.

This year was also special for Awash since it was the first time that it has surpassed its fierce competitor Dashen Bank in its 22 years history.

Read more at: The Reporter