Bermuda Commercial Bank (BCB) yesterday reported its yearly profit more than doubled to $7.45 million from $2.60 million a year ago.The bank’s total assets increased by $40.03 million to $572.01 million from $531.98 million in 2011.BCB, which became a wholly owned subsidiary of Bermuda National Limited (BNL) earlier this year, recorded interest income of $18.87 million for the year, up from $11.40 million last year. The bank attributes the increase to strong performance of its financial investment portfolio.“BCB’s results are pleasing and continue to illustrate the progress that the bank has made since the major shareholders acquired control in April 2010,” said Warren McLeland, chairman of BNL.“Of particular note are the bank’s improved capital position of $104.76 million, its strong capital ratio of 23.34 percent, and its highly liquid assets. The bank is continuing to develop its product offerings and we look forward to its further progress in the current financial year.”Basic and diluted earnings per share for the year were $1.06 compared to $1.02 a year ago. Total revenue for the year was $22.43 million compared to the underlying revenue of $12.63 million in 2011.“Our improved earnings and strong revenue growth reflect solid customer deposits, increased fee income and strong, stable interest earnings on our investment portfolio,” said BCB chairman Michael Collier.“The bank’s profit, together with the unrealised growth of the Bank’s investment portfolio, boosted shareholders’ equity to $104.76 million at September 30, 2012, compared with $82.92 million at September 30, 2011.”The bank also recorded increased interest income on its small loan portfolio following an increase in year-on-year average loan levels. Interest from loans and advances to customers increased to $1.39 million from $0.93 million last year.Total customer deposits climbed 3.2 percent to $457.54 million at September 30, 2012 compared to $443.19 million a year earlier.Term deposits greater than one month showed a year-on-year increase of 49 percent, while average term deposits increased by 75 percent over the prior year.BCB’s total expenses increased from $10.03 million to $14.98 million this year, largely due to an expanded cost base following the acquisitions of Paragon and Charter. The bank says it’s also due to increased headcount costs following the expansion and strengthening of their professional employee base as its core banking business grows.“While the board of BNL is acutely mindful of the twin challenges of a struggling Bermuda economy and the international economic headwinds, and the difficulty in attracting suitable staff, it is pleasing to highlight that the bank’s employee numbers have increased by 40 percent since September 30, 2011,” Mr McLeland said.“By investing in our employee base we are looking to broaden and solidify our business, thereby creating a stronger enterprise for our customers,” Mr Collier said. “Headcount rose primarily from the consolidation of the employees at Paragon and Charter. We also increased headcount in our banking division due to increased business levels, new products and initiatives, and a general strengthening of employee depth.”As a result of BCB’s positive results, the board of BNL has recommended a dividend payment to BNL shareholders of 20 cents per share. Combined with BCB’s interim dividend paid in May 2012, the total dividend for the year is 30 cents.The bank reported it realised gains of $7.86 million following the sale and maturity of financial investments during the year compared to gains of $4.45 million in 2011. BCB says the year-on-year growth included a one-off gain relating to the early call of a security within the bank’s investment portfolio.Looking forward, BCB anticipates that there will be a levelling off in the growth rate of the bank’s cost base as the first phase of its growth strategy has been largely implemented.