Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) has been recognised for the first time as “Bank of the Year-Qatar 2015” by The Banker magazine as part of the Bank of the Year Awards.
The selection process was based, among other factors, on an institution’s progress in the preceding year and reflects QIB’s “outstanding growth and development,” the bank said in a statement yesterday.
The awards ceremony was held in London recently and the award was presented to Bassel Gamal, QIB’s Group CEO.
In the first nine months ending September 30, QIB’s net profit amounted to QR1.4bn, representing a growth of 24.8% over the same period in 2014. Total assets increased by 28% compared to December 2014 and now stand at QR123bn driven by “continued growth in the core financing and investing activities”.
Financing activities stand at QR82bn, having increased by QR22bn, representing a 38% increase compared to December 2014. Customer deposits at the bank have grown by QR20bn to reach QR87bn, a growth of 30% compared to December 2014.
“This outstanding overall growth, along with its many technological, community-and customer-oriented initiatives, was a key factor in the bank’s success at the awards,” the statement added.
Gamal said, “Over the past year, we have outperformed the market both in terms of balance sheet and profitability growth, delivering strong and sustainable results to our shareholders.” Recently, QIB was also recognised as Islamic Bank of the Year 2015 in the Middle East, as well as, for the third year in a row, awarded Islamic Bank of the Year in Qatar by The Banker magazine, making QIB the “first and only bank in the world to be recognised across both categories’ awards in the same year”, according to the statement.
QIB was also recognised in The Banker’s annual comparative ranking of banking brands. The ranking highlighted QIB as the fastest growing financial brand in the world, with its brand value rising 91% over the previous year.