Dear Viewer,

Assalam-u-Alaikum

On behalf of the Board of Directors, I take pleasure in welcoming you to the Twenty Sixth Annual General Meeting of The City Bank Limited and to place in your hands the Annual Report and Audited Financial Statements of the Bank for the year 2008.

It is a significant factor that this report has been compiled in the backdrop of a year which saw the emergence of a real global economic and financial market crisis causing all of us in the sector to face immense challenges.

Despite the macro economic scenario with visible signs of drawbacks for progress, I am happy to report a robust performance by your Bank in 2008. Despite the most uneven and downtrend global economic situation, our Bank’s management strengths and values maintained over the years, helped the Bank to perform well above the expectations. Our operating profit was recorded at Taka 1,754.92 million which was the highest on record and surpassed our budgeted figure. We saw modest growth in other areas of KPIs which I believe is satisfactory in the light of the constraints faced by us in local banking scene.

In my last year’s message to you as Chairman, I informed you that, we wanted to turn our bank into a financial supermarket for financial products and services. In order to achieve that goal we needed to adopt a ‘centralized’ form of banking where individual or retail customers will approach the branch while the corporate clientele will be served from the head office and regional corporate offices and SME clientele will be served from the SME centers. All this would be backed by efficient operations service delivery units at head office supported by a robust IT backbone in which we are prudently investing for the future.



In 2008, a new logo and corporate slogan “Making Sense of Money” was successfully launched which has given the bank a new character that symbolizes its epitome of advancement. I am happy to inform you that the Bank has now successfully transformed itself to a centralized form of operation and introduced a significant amount of new products some of which were first of its kind in the market. We have also recently broadened our business line and launched our brokerage operations in this vibrant and promising capital market. This was only possible due to our foresightedness in investing at the right time in our two bourses. I am extremely happy that our IT infrastructure has already extended its reach across all our branches, SME centers and ATM booths, ensuring real time banking facility in each of our location in its true form and meaning. We are also establishing our own switching system which is nearing its completion very soon for both debit as well as credit cards from our current third party switching system. This investment in IT system will enable our customers, access to exciting new products and enhance our capabilities to offer premier product features of international repute. These investments will not only give us the competitive edge but will also reap us benefits for years to come.

Everyone at City Bank contributed to fostering the present transforming culture of accountability, openness and integrity, beginning with the Board of Directors. The Board’s guidance, supervision and commitment to sound corporate governance ensure that our Bank is managed for the benefit of all its many stakeholders. We are proud that City Bank’s policies and procedures meet or exceed the standards and requirements in all the locations where we operate. The bank’s transformational journey started in middle of 2007 and has already provided a unique dimension to your bank in the market. The benefit of this is being reflected in Bank’s improving financials, operational excellence and customers’ increased satisfaction. A new horizon of reaching the Bank in an enviable height is becoming more visible.

The year 2009 will no doubt be another challenging year for the country as well as your bank. As a policy your Bank will make every endeavor to maintain the quality of its assets, keep a close watch on our balance sheet, the portfolio of investment etc. and keep the bottom line profitably as a factor to be considered not at the expense of undue risks and weakening of our medium term resources. Above all your Board will ensure that we at all times will fulfill our fiduciary responsibility to our stakeholders, especially to our depositors and customers, while maintaining the highest level of ethics and values, through conscience driven decision making within accepted corporate core values. With the anticipated downtrend economic climate, we expect major opportunities in retail and SME segments. Our main focus in the current year will be to continue our stable and strong position in the banking sector. Efforts will also be made to expand our deposit base, look at areas to reduce cost of funding, management of expenses and improve the portfolio quality. The Management will continue to enhance the relationship with clients and also offer necessary assistance, wherever applicable, to our customers facing financial setbacks during their crisis period. Our CSR commitment will focus on the urgent social needs such as education, medical treatment, natural disasters etc.

A further milestone of progress will be achieved towards the bottom half of 2009 with bank’s rented head office moving from Dilkusha Commercial Area to Gulshan Avenue. The magnificent edifice, a multistoried bank’s owned landmark, reflects our commitment to the community that we have served since 1983 and our core values of clarity, openness and transparency.

Although the immediate outlook for our operating economic environment remains uncertain, we would remain focused to weather the storm.

In conclusion, on behalf of the Board of Directors, I would like to thank our shareholders for their continued support through out these troubled times. I also wish to acknowledge our customers’ continued trust and confidence in the Bank and the hard work, dedication and loyalty of our employees. It is due to their commitment and vigilance, particularly in these difficult financial times, that City Bank continues to make good progress. My special thanks to Bangladesh Bank, Securities and Exchange Commission, and other regulatory bodies for their continued support in our endeavor to excel.