The Bermuda Commercial Bank -- in its first full year under new ownership -- more than doubled its earnings to more than $1 million in 1994.

Bermuda's third bank yesterday reported its best results in more than a dozen years with profits of $1,040,782, up 104 percent from the $509,597 earned in 1993.

Net income per share rose from 36 cents to 73 cents for the review period.

Retained earnings at the end of the year were $1,384,733 compared to $376,944 at the same time last year.

The financial results represent the first full year of management of the bank by First Curacao International Bank (FCIB) -- owned by local oil magnate Mr.

John Deuss -- since Barclays Bank plc sold its 32 percent of BCB to FCIB in May 1993.

The dividend due to shareholders has been maintained at 10 cents per share.

The bank's assets grew to $235.4 million, compared to $215.7 million a year ago.

"We hope that these results will give the market continued confidence in the growth of BCB and the role that BCB has to play in the Bermuda business and banking community, said managing director Ms Audette Exel.

"We feel that our results will be well received by the market accordingly and we are very much looking forward to a very strong year next year. We have had an enormous amount of change at BCB over the last 18 months and we have now laid the platform, we think, for strong growth and building.'' "We are very happy with the results. The success is due to the assets under administration, including trust custody and mutual funds. Probably the strongest area of growth has been the mutual funds area.

"That impacts throughout all sectors of the bank, because we obviously have involvement in mutual funds from our corporate management company, from our custody and also from the treasury perspective, so that has been extremely good business for us in the course of the last year.'' There was an increase in assets under trust, administration and custody of more than $1 billion. Net interest income was maintained at $2.4 million.

While exchange gains fell, due to the bank's risk averse policies and an aggressive stance on rates given to their clients, fee and investment-based revenue increased significantly, contributing to the improved earnings.

The philosophy of the bank has been to minimise exchange, interest rate and maturity mismatch risk. The results are seen in a weighted risk asset ratio of over 17 percent, more than double the required Basle International Standard of eight percent.

Shareholders' equity, after dividends, increased by eight percent.

The bank has future plans that include continued investment in new technology, the development of the bank's first overseas subsidiary, BCB (Mauritius) Ltd.

and the design of new products for the competitive Bermuda market.

Ms Exel said: "Participative management is now firmly established in the bank and all its subsidiaries. Every member of staff has worked extremely hard in achieving the results of the past year. These results are a tribute to their commitment to, and their enthusiasm for, the bank.''