QIIB net profit reaches QR937.7mn in 2020

 

QIIB posted a net profit of QR937.7mn in 2020, up 1.2% on the previous bank, the premier Islamic bank announced Tuesday.

QIIB chairman and managing director Sheikh Dr Khalid bin Thani bin Abdullah al-Thani

“The results reflected the bank's ability to deal with the challenges and market factors, which was aligned with the strength and high solvency of the Qatari economy, in its various sectors,” QIIB chairman and managing director Sheikh Dr Khalid bin Thani al-Thani said.
Earnings per share stood at QR0.55 in 2020.

QIIB CEO Dr Abdulbasit al-Shaibei

QIIB’s board of directors has recommended to the general assembly, the distribution of cash dividends of 32.5% of the nominal share value (QR0.325 per share), subject to the Qatar Central Bank's approval of 2020 financial results along with the proposed cash dividends.
Sheikh Dr Khalid said, "The bank's results for 2020 have clearly proven the bank's ability to maintain the stability of its financial and profitable indicators, while overcoming the factors that shook the world's markets in 2020, especially after Covid-19 pandemic ramifications.
“This in itself is a great achievement, which we owe, in the first place, to the wise strategy adopted by the Government and the supervisory authorities to support the Qatari economy in its various sectors, under the directives and the patronage of His Highness the Amir of the State of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani.”
Sheikh Dr Khalid stated, "QIIB implemented a comprehensive plan to deal with and manage the unexpected circumstances and various risks. QIIB’s plan has also focused on enhancing the bank's operational performance, taking advantage of the opportunities provided by the Qatari economy and effectively co-ordinating with various business sectors, to cope with the unforeseen circumstances. This strategy succeeded to a large extent as QIIB's financial indicators kept growing and we were able to maintain stability, and more importantly, to enhance our operational efficiency".
He added, "The local market on which we permanently focus, has provided many opportunities and has prevented us from resorting to alternative plans. This strategy reinforces the right vision we have had which is reflected in focusing on various local projects. Those projects, whether large, medium or small, represent the most beneficial opportunities to achieve growth on one hand, and participate in our country's development on the other".
He said, "Despite the unprecedented factors, the banking market was competitive during the past year on different levels. In addition to the stable results, QIIB's most important achievement during the past year was the bank's great stride in digital transformation.
"In view of the important indicators achieved by QIIB, international credit rating agencies recognised the strength of the bank's financial position, as Moody's and Fitch confirmed the bank's rating at ‘A2’ and ‘A’ respectively with a stable outlook. This was based on several important factors, one of which is the bank's high-quality assets. Also, another factor is the bank’s profitability ratios, which are considered strong compared to its local counterparts. The bank has efficiently managed its operational costs and has managed a high-quality investment portfolio. Not to mention the significant decrease in rate of its financial non-performing loans.
QIIB chief executive officer, Dr Abdulbasit Ahmed al-Shaibei said, "The bank's total income in 2020 amounted to QR2,450mn, whereas the bank's total assets reached QR61.3bn last year compared to QR56.8bn in 2019, with a growth rate of 7.9%.
“The bank's financing activities at the end of 2020 increased to QR40.5bn compared to QR37bn in 2019, indicating a growth rate of 9.5%. Also, customer deposits grew by 16.2% at the end of 2020 to QR36.2bn.”
The CEO referred to QIIB’s efforts during 2020 to control and regulate the operational cost, which in return improved operational efficiency (cost benefit ratio) to 20.3% compared to 24.1% in 2019. This is considered one of the most efficient indicators, either locally or internationally.
QIIB has also worked on increasing the quality of its financing assets, by decreasing non-performing financing percentage as end of 2020 to become 1.6% compared to 1.9% as end of 2019, which proves the effectiveness of credit risk policies and collections at the bank.
Dr al-Shaibei noted, "The total equity right at the end of 2020 reached QR8.3bn, while the capital adequacy under Basel III stood at 16.6%, thus reflecting the strength of QIIB's financial position, bearing in mind the various risks in the market.
"QIIB's financial results for 2020 confirm the bank's ability to maintain the ascending pattern of its indicators, despite the unprecedented challenges at hand during the past year for all sectors, particularly the banking sector.”
He added, "The decisive factor that helped the bank achieve the positive results that are announced today, is the strength of the Qatari economy and the important measures taken by the Government and supervisory authorities to face the rapid developments. The Qatari economy has proven to be one of the most important regional and international economies, and it also has proven capability of facing challenges of all types".