RIYADH: Bank Albilad posted a 23 percent surge in profits for the first nine months of 2022, driven by a rise in operating profit. Following the announcement, Albilad saw its shares fall 1.50 percent to end Tuesday"s session at SR52.5 ($14). The bank’s profit rose to SR1.5 billion from SR1.3 billion in the same period a year earlier, according to a bourse filing The profit hike was mainly supported by a 12-percent surge in operating income to SR3.8 billion. It attributed the results to higher income from investment and financing activities, despite a rise in total operating expenses of 8 percent. In the third quarter of 2022, the bank saw its net profit rise 20 percent to SR541 million from SR450 million a year earlier on the back of 13 percent growth in total operating income.