By Satish Kanady
DOHA: The Qatar First Bank’s (QFB) Alternative Investment businesses continued to deliver a solid performance in 2015. QFB exited three investments during the year, with IRRs or internal rate of returns ranging from 20% to 50%, Chairman Abdulla bin Fahad bin Ghorab Al Marri stated yesterday.
Addressing the annual general meeting, QFB chairman said the bank sold its remaining shares in Al Noor Hospitals, completed the Westbourne House project in London’s W2 district and sold the plot of land near Burj Khalifa, in Dubai. “ In terms of new investments, we acquired a 15.6% stake in Cambridge Medical & Rehabilitation Centre based in Abu Dhabi, the Centre caters for those in need of non-acute rehabilitation with a high level of physiotherapy as well as treatment for a broad range of conditions.”
Al Marri said the Bank’s Sukuk book continued to grow in size to reach QR943m ($259m) while maintaining both its investment-grade credit quality and the same duration. “We expect the challenging market conditions to continue in 2016, In spite of these challenges QFB will continue adopting an opportunistic outlook to source viable investment opportunities that surface in such market conditions in order to generate sound returns for the Bank and create value for our shareholders.”
The bank’s listing on the Qatar Exchange remains a top priority and we continue to work closely with the concerned authorities to complete the listing requirements. Pending regulatory approvals, we hope the listing will conclude shortly allowing QFB to attract new investors, provide existing shareholders with a liquidity event and secure a future funding source through the capital markets, he said.
The year 2015 was another exciting year for QFB as it marks the Bank’s evolution from a boutique investment bank to a full-fledged Shariah-compliant private bank and we continue to capitalise on the growing demand for Islamic banking and the increase in wealth in the region.
“We closed 2015 recording a gross income of QR336.5m and a net income of QR66m. Capital deployed during 2015 is QR33.9m, bringing our total capital invested to date to QR 1.54bn and total assets has grown by 26% to QR5.9bn.
As the global investment market continues to go through major challenges, investors are demonstrating a growing interest in Shariah compliant financial offerings. This trend confirms QFB’s strategy to expand Shariah-compliant products to the corporate and private banking market, providing expert advice on Islamic Finance services that demonstrate genuine growth and profitability, Al Marri added.
Ziad Makkawi, Chief Executive Officer, QFB said: “Last year was a milestone year for QFB. We confirmed our strategy and streamlined our businesses to offer Shari’ah compliant services including alternative investments with a focus on private equity and real estate, as well as corporate & institutional banking, private banking & wealth management, and treasury & investments.”
The Peninsula
