Third quarter results released this week by Standard Chartered Bank in Pakistan show a profit-before-tax of $12.1 billion for the first nine months of 2016.

Beating the odds of  margin compression from lower interest rates, Standard Chartered Pakistan’s (SCP) total profit of Rp $12.1 billion between January and September of this year is said to be reflective of well-manager operations.

SCP chief executive, Shazad Dada, said that the results were also driven mainly from the bank’s new digital initiatives and reflected disciplined and controlled business operations and strong recoveries from past debt problems.

“The bank continues to invest into its digital capabilities and infrastructure to enhance banking experience through introduction of innovative digital solutions,” he said.

“The Bank has seen a strong third quarter performance.”

Dada was confident that the continuous increase in low cost deposits had greatly attributed to the bank’s performance, with 93 per cent of the SCP deposit base comprised of current and savings accounts.

“[We are] maintaining a strong focus on controls we endeavour to further enhance the quality of our client experience,” Dada said.

“We are well positioned to take advantage of long-term growth opportunities in Pakistan.”