Acleda Bank Plc’s 2018 profit decreased by nearly 10 per cent compared to 2017, according to its audited financial report.

The report shows that last year Acleda Bank made a profit of $84,009,268, a 9.2 per cent decrease compared to 2017’s $92,527,998.

Acleda Bank president and CEO In Channy told The Post on Monday that the drop in profits last year was due to stagnant growth in the first six months, though the second half of the year saw a spike.

He said due to 2017’s figures, the bank early last year focused more on training staff and educating customers, as well as improving the quality of some of its services, meaning increased spending on human resources.

“We spent a lot on training in 2018,” Channy said.

Acleda Bank last year made $423,256,184 in revenue from interest and $64,413,418 from fees and commission, while interest expenses totalled $151,404,682 and those on fees and commission $749,501, the report shows.

The bank expected its profits to significantly increase this year.

“As we had a lot of human resources training in 2018, we expect [lost] growth to be made up for this year,” Channy said.