MANAMA: Al Baraka Banking Group, a Bahrain-headquartered Islamic banking major, reported sustained patterns of profitability in 2014 with achieving net profit of $67 million in the first quarter.
The bank said that these results reflect the Group’s ability to continue investing in lucrative opportunities arising from the current situation.
At the same time, it also reflects the Group’s continued efforts to forge ahead with its strategic plans for growth, by enhancing its technical and capital capabilities and expanding its geographic network, despite the current fluctuations in the international and regional economies and the financial markets.
“We are pleased with the financial results achieved by the Group in the first quarter of 2014, given the fluctuating economic and financial conditions that the world has been facing, which in turn, has impacted the activities of the banking sector,” Shaikh Saleh Abdulla Kamel, Chairman of Al Baraka Banking Group, said.
However, he added, ABG thanks to God, was prompt in developing prudent strategies that enabled it to deal successfully with these conditions and achieve satisfactory profit, while at the same time, the Group continued to implement its strategies for expansion and growth and strengthening our human resources and enhancing our capacity to meet the demands of growth.
“It would not have been possible to realize all of these achievements, were it not for the strong capital resources and the long standing experience of the Group; and its stringent adherence to the Islamic banking model, which calls upon us to work on the development of land and serve the communities amongst which we operate, while being committed at all times to the highest ethical and professional standards.”
“These results are very good by all standards and have surpassed the targets projected in our plans for the current year, despite the difficult conditions in the regional and international financial markets, against the backdrop of political and economic fluctuations, regionally and internationally,” Abdulla Ammar Al Saudi, Deputy Chairman of ABG said.
“We would like to emphasize that our financing and investment policies and activities during the first quarter of this year were actively focused on investment opportunities arising from the current situation, whereby we capitalized on our substantial resources and extensive geographical network. However, our cautious and selective approach, together with the extreme caution exercised by the markets and customers towards implementing their financial and investment programs has created the desired results.”
“The financial results that we have achieved during the first quarter of the year 2014 are distinctive by all standards, especially when compared with the budgeted figures that we planned, where the actual profits earned for the first quarter of the year is 19% above the budgeted profit for the same period, which is very satisfactory,” Adnan Ahmed Yousif, Board Member and President and Chief Executive of Al Baraka Banking Group, said.
“We estimated that our net income during the first half of 2014 will decline due to several reasons, the most important is the decision of the Algerian authorities with regards to the new standards of commissions of opening and confirming letters of credit, where they put ceilings on these commissions, which had a negative impact on income from commissions by the all Algerian banks, and especially Al Baraka Bank Algeria, which finances approximately 6% of the total foreign trade of Algeria. But the Bank already initiated alternative financing and investment programs which will enable it, God willingly, during the second half of this year to compensate all decline due to lower commissions.”