QIB posts QR1.815bn net profit for H1 2022; total assets reach QR193bn

Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) posted a net profit of QR1.815bn for the six months of 2022, representing a growth of 13.8% over the same period in 2021. Total assets of the bank increased by 4.8% compared to June 2021 and now stand at QR193bn, driven by growth in investing activities. Customer deposits now stand at QR129bn, higher by 3.2% compared to June 2021.Total income for H1 2022 was QR4.284bn, registering a growth of 4.2% over QR4.112bn for the same period in 2021. Income from financing and investing activities registered a growth of 6.1% to reach QR3.76bn for the first half of 2022 compared to QR3.543bn for the same period of 2021. Total operating expenses for the six-month period ended June 30, 2022 was QR540mn with strong operating income generation and cost containment enabling the bank to further improve its efficiencies and bringing down the cost-to-income ratio to 16.8% from 17.5% for the same period in 2021, which is the lowest in the Qatari Banking sector.QIB was able to maintain the ratio of non-performing financing assets to total financing assets at 1.5%, similar to levels as of June 30, 2021, and one of the lowest in the industry, reflecting the quality of the bank’s financing assets portfolio and its effective risk management framework. QIB continues to pursue the conservative impairment policy by building a precautionary impairment charge on financing assets for QR885mn for H1 2022. The bank continued to maintain a healthy coverage ratio for non-performing financing assets at 95%. Total shareholders’ equity reached QR21bn, up by 2.5% compared to December 2021, a growth of 11.8% compared to June 2021. Total capital adequacy of the bank under Basel III guidelines is 18.5% as of June 2022, higher than the minimum regulatory requirements prescribed by Qatar Central Bank and Basel Committee. In May 2022, Moody’s Investors Service (Moody’s) affirmed the long-term deposit ratings at “A1”. In March 2022, Capital Intelligence Ratings (CI) affirmed the bank’s long-term currency rating (LTCR) of ‘A+’. In May 2022, Standard & Poor’s (S&P) affirmed the bank’s credit rating at ‘A-’. In April 2022, Fitch Ratings affirmed the bank’s credit rating at ‘A-’. During the first half of 2022, QIB received more than 20 awards from internationally recognised publications reflecting its robust financial performance, excellence in delivering high-quality banking and financial services to its retail and corporate customers, as well as the success of its digital transformation strategy. QIB has recently received ‘Best Bank’, ‘Best Bank for Digital Solutions’, and ‘Best Bank for Islamic Finance in Qatar’ from Euromoney Magazine. The Banker Magazine, part of Financial Times Group, recognised QIB as ‘Bank of the Year in Qatar’ and ‘Best Islamic Bank of the Year in the Middle East, Qatar, and the UK’ in recognition of its continuous growth and solid performance.The bank also received ‘MENA Retail Bank of the Year’, ‘Best Retail Bank in Qatar’, ‘Best App for Customer Experience in the MENA Region’, and ‘Excellence in Mobile Banking in the MENA Region’ from MEED Magazine. Furthermore, QIB bagged four prestigious awards from Global Finance in recognition of its continuous efforts in meeting the needs of retail customers, SMEs, and corporates. Recognising the biggest listed companies in the Middle East, Forbes ranked QIB 25th in the ‘Top 100 Listed Companies in the Middle East’, and 3rd in Qatar, while, Bassel Gamal, Group CEO of QIB, was featured in the ‘Top 100 CEOs in the Middle East 2022’. Moreover, Gamal was also recognised for his leadership and was ranked first in the region as the ‘Top CEO’ in Shariah-compliant banks at the Top CEO Conference and Awards ceremony.Additionally, QIB received ‘Best Retail Bank’ and ‘Best SME Bank in Qatar’ from the Asian Banker magazine, four awards from the Digital Banker Magazine, as well as two more titles from The Asset Magazine for its continuous efforts in digital banking services. EMEA Finance awarded QIB with two titles – ‘Best Islamic Bank in Qatar’ and ‘Best Product Launch in the Middle East’. Islamic Finance News recognised QIB as ‘Best Islamic Bank in Qatar’ for the third consecutive year.