Saad Azhari told Reuters BLOM Bank's assets grew by $612 million in the quarter to stand at $18.5 billion at end-March. Customer deposits went up $698 million to $15.7 billion.
"There were some expectations that we might see at the beginning of this year some slowdown, which did not occur. Until now, there are no signs of it occurring. There is still strong confidence, strong growth in deposits," he said.
"We are seeing better results than we were expecting."
BLOM Bank, the second largest bank in Lebanon in assets recorded net profit growth of 23 percent in 2008, mirroring the strong performance of a banking sector that has been largely shielded from the fallout of the global financial crisis by tight regulation and cautious risk management.
The sector benefited from a surge of deposits from expatriates who saw Lebanon's banks as relatively secure. Economists have warned deposit growth could slow as the world economy slows.
Azhari said the first quarter's strong performance had extended into April. "We are still witnessing a very strong growth in deposits," he said. "From what we can see until now, it looks like 2009 is going to be better than 2008."
Shares in BLOM Bank last traded up 0.2 percent on Thursday at $61.65 in thin volume. The broader BLOM stock index was up 1.0 percent at 1,085.38.
Growth in Lebanese banking sector deposits is seen as vital in helping the state to meet borrowing needs to finance a public debt equivalent to about 162 percent of gross domestic product.
Central bank governor Riad Salameh has projected overall bank deposit growth of between 7 percent and 10 percent for the year, against a rise of 15 percent in 2008. He has forecasted economic growth of 4 percent for the year.
Azhari said: "We were surprised by the strong activity we have witnessed in the first quarter ... in all sectors, commercial, industrial, tourism."
The global economic slowdown had yet to have "any important effect on business in Lebanon", he said.
BLOM Bank would be expanding its branch network in Syria, Lebanon and Egypt by a total of at least 10 branches in 2009. "It could even be more," Azhari said. Blom Bank Egypt currently operates 23 branches, while the bank has 16 branches in Syria.
BLOM Bank was expecting to open a private and investment banking operation in Saudi Arabia in May and a corporate bank in Qatar in June, he added.