Doha, April 29, 2019:   Al Khalij Commercial Bank (al khaliji) P.Q.S.C, in Qatar, released its consolidated financial statements for the quarter ended 31 March 2019 today with a Net Profit of QAR 176 million for the quarter. This represents an increase of 4% over its financial results for the same period of last year.

 

His Excellency Sheikh Hamad Bin Faisal Bin Thani Al Thani, Chairman and Managing Director stated:

'We began the year on a solid footing, reporting improved profitability in the first quarter of the year. Qatar has announced a surplus budget for 2019, with projects worth c. QAR 48 billion expected to be awarded during 2019. These will lend positively to the economy. In line with our strategic focus on the domestic market, we aim to support our clients in participating in these projects, and the growth of Qatar during 2019”

 

Commenting on the quarter’s performance, Fahad Al Khalifa, al khaliji’s Group Chief Executive Officer said:

“al khaliji had a strong start to 2019, with profits increasing by 27% on the prior quarter and 4% year on year. The outcome is owing to better optimization of our balance sheet to deliver sustainable earnings at higher margins. 

 

Because of these efforts, I am pleased to report that while the average balance sheet marginally shrank compared to the last quarter, Operating Income increased by 13% in the quarter while NII and Fee Income grew by 6% and 37% respectively. Alongside optimizing revenues, we have continued to keep a close watch on our expenses, which are down 5% on Q1 2018 resulting in an efficiency ratio of 26.8%.

 

al khaliji places great emphasis on delivering an enhanced service to its client base and once again has received industry recognition in this regard; the bank was awarded ‘Best Corporate Bank Qatar’ and ‘Best Financial Inclusion Program MENA’ at the recently held the European Magazine Awards. 

 

Risk management continues to remain at the heart of our operating philosophy. Our proactive approach in managing our loan portfolio, coupled with a conservative attitude to provisioning has led to a 51% reduction in net impairments compared to the same period last year.  

 

We have delivered these results on the back of a strong and liquid balance sheet; our Liquidity Cover Ratio (LCR) remains well above the minimum regulatory requirement and our Capital Adequacy Ratio stands at 18.4%. 

 

The IMF expects Qatar to have 3% GDP growth, this bodes well for the banking sector, and we are well poised to benefit from the opportunities this will bring for our business. We remain confident this will translate into improved financial metrics for the Bank”.