(MENAFN- The Peninsula) The Peninsula
Doha: Chairman of Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani has announced that QIB has achieved net profit attributable to shareholders of QR3,555m for the fiscal year 2021 compared to QR3,065m for the year 2020, thus marking an increase by 16 percent over last year with basic earnings per share of QR1.42 compared to QR1.21 as at December 31, 2020.
QIB Board of Directors proposed a dividend distribution to shareholders of QR0.575 per share i.e. 57.5 percent of the nominal share value, subject to approval of Qatar Central Bank and QIB's General Assembly.
Total assets of the Bank have increased by 11.2 percent compared to 2020 and now stands at QR194bn driven by the growth in the financing and investing activities. Financing activities registered a strong annual growth of 7.8 percent to reach QR128bn compared to QR119bn as at December 31, 2020. Investing activities have grown sharply by 33.5 percent to reach QR44bn compared to QR33bn as at 31 December 2020.
Customer Deposits also registered a robust growth of 11 percent to reach QR131bn compared to QR118bn as at 31 December 2020. The Bank's strong asset liability management capabilities enabled it to significantly improve the Financing to Deposit ratio from 101 percent as at 31 Dec 2020 to now reach 98 percent, reflecting the bank's strong liquidity position.
Total Income for the year ended 31 December 2021 reached QR8.1bn registering a growth of 2.2 percent compared to QR7.9bn for the year ended 31 December 2020. Income from financing and investing activities was QR7.1bn for the year ended 31 December 2021 with income from financing activities having grown by 1 percent, despite low level of global interest rates and the support provided to the customers impacted by COVID-19 pandemic.
Net fee and commission income has grown by 10 percent compared to last year and have reached QR726m, reflecting positively on the Bank's core operating and banking services activities.
Total general and administrative expenses of the bank were QR1.1bn for the year ended 31 December 2021 and were contained at 1 percent below the year ended 31 December 2020. Bank's drive to improve the efficiency supported by strict cost management measures helped in bringing down the cost-to-income ratio from 20.1 percent in 2020 to 18.1 percent for 2021, which is the lowest in the Qatari Banking sector.
QIB was able to manage the ratio of non-performing financing assets to total financing assets around 1.4 percent, similar to levels as at 31 December 2020 and one of the lowest in the industry, reflecting the quality of the Bank's financing assets portfolio and its effective risk management framework. Given the uncertainties related to long-term impact of the pandemic on various business segments and geographies in which the clients operate, the Bank created precautionary impairment charge on financing assets for QR1.3bn in the year ended 31 December 2021, which is 5 percent higher than the amount set aside in the previous year.
QIB continues to pursue the conservative impairment policy maintaining a healthy 95 percent coverage ratio for non-performing financing assets as of December 2021.
Total Shareholders' Equity of the Bank reached QR20.7bn, an increase of 13.3 percent compared to QR18.3bn as at 31 December 2020. As of December 2021 the Total Capital adequacy of the Bank under Basel III guidelines is 18.9 percent, well above the regulatory minimum requirements prescribed by Qatar Central Bank and Basel Committee.
Commenting on 2021 end of year financial results, Sheikh Jassim bin Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, QIB Chairman said:“In 2021, QIB has accorded the highest priority to the safety of our employees, our customers, and business continuity, ensuring that the Bank is resilient against potential risks and well-poised to benefit from the recovery. QIB managed to maintain and strengthen its leadership in the Qatari banking sector and continued to be the largest Islamic Bank and the largest private Bank in Qatar.”
He added:“The performance of the Bank in terms of growth, portfolio and profitability is a result of the focused execution of our business strategy over the past few years. Our continuing efforts to promote a cashless ecosystem and enable digital access to financial services proved invaluable in an environment of social distancing and restrictions on movement. Our strategy, based on a customer-centric approach, enabled us to respond to the needs of our customers and launch digital alternatives for them to stay connected and meet their financial needs.”
“We launched several initiatives like the all-new QIB Mobile App and the Corporate Mobile App giving 24/7 access to our retail and corporate customers to their banking accounts. We introduced for the first time in Qatar a Chatbot armed with proprietary artificial intelligence and machine learning algorithms, a Video Banking solution, the brokerage platform, and continued to invest in digital payments with the introduction of Apple Pay and Visa Direct. We continued to provide strong support to our SME customers, through our own initiatives and by participating in the QDB & Qatar Central Bank stimulus programs in order to smooth the Covid-19 negative impact to their business continuity.” He continued.
Sheikh Jassim also highlighted the importance of the recent release of the QIB's first sustainability report in line with the Qatar National Vison 2030 and the National Strategy for the Environment and Climate Change. The report highlighted QIB's efforts to contribute to the accomplishment of global sustainable development goals and highlights the bank's achievements in implementing Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) standards.
'This year's financial results confirm the Bank's strong foundation and reflect the firmness, resilience and stability of the Qatari banking sector and the national economy. Our sustainable and stable business model has been recognized through our credit ratings from all the international rating agencies and translated into numerous recognitions and awards by the most credible international financial publications”, he added.
Sheikh Jassim concluded the Board meeting by expressing his profound gratitude to QIB's shareholders and customers for their trust in the Bank, and his appreciation to the Board of Directors and all Bank employees for their dedication and continuous efforts towards achieving positive results and continuous improvements during this difficult period”.
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