MANAMA: The shareholders of Al Baraka Banking Group (ABG) during annual general assembly held at its newly built Bahrain Bay Headquarters approved the cash dividend of $55.62 million for the financial year of 2015.
Both ordinary and extra-ordinary general meetings were chaired by Chairman of the Group HE Shaikh Saleh Kamel and present were the board members and executive management.
The Group’s shareholders reviewed at the ordinary meeting the report submitted by the board of directors about the group’s activities during the financial year ended 31 December, 2015, the report of the Sharia Supervisory Board on financial year ended 31 December 2015 and the external auditors report on the financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2015.
The shareholders approved the financial statement for the year 2015 and the proposed distribution of profits for the financial year ended 31 December 2015 after obtainment of the required official approvals: to transfer of 10% of the net income amounting to US$ 16.28 million to the statutory reserve, to distribute US$ 22.15 million as cash dividend to the shareholders, amounting to 2 cents for each share equal to 2% of the par value of the share, and to transfer of US$ 124.34 million to the retained earnings.
The ordinary general meeting approved also the recommendation of the Board of Directors to distribute bonus shares for shareholders registered as of the date of the meeting amounting to 3 shares for every 100 fully paid up shares (totaling US$ 33,472,382 equal to 3% of the issued and paid up capital) from the retained earnings after obtainment of the required official approvals.
The meeting also approved a remuneration of US$ 1.5 million to the members of the board of directors and the recommendation of the board of directors to reappoint Messrs Ernst and Young as Auditors for the Financial year ending 31/12/2016, and to authorize and empower the Board of Directors or its delegate to fix their remuneration. Then, the meeting reviewed the Corporate Governance Report as per CBB instruction, which include the evaluation of the
performance of ABG’s board, members and Committee and the percentage report of the board of directors’ attendance at board meetings for 2015.
Then the meeting approved the payment of the shareholders’ Zakat for the distributable dividends as of 31 December 2015, where to pay 51.6 US cents for each 1000 shares by the shareholders for the dividends distributed and received in cash and to authorize ABG management to pay USD 3,962,022 as Zakat on behalf of the shareholders for the dividends, not distributed in cash, to be deducted directly from the retained earnings.
During the extraordinary general meeting the shareholders approved the increase of the issued and paid up share capital from US$ 1.12bIllion to US$1.15 billion by transferring US$ 33.48 million to the share capital and issue bonus shares of 3 shares for every 100 fully paid up shares to the shareholders registered as of the date of this meeting.
The meeting also approved the amendment of the Memorandum and Articles of Association as per the Resolution to increase the capital as above and the authorization and empowerment of the Board of Directors or its delegate to take the necessary action, to effect amendment to the Memorandum and Articles of Association for the purpose of publicizing the increase in the share capital, and attesting the necessary amendment to the Memorandum and Articles of Association.
“The year 2015 witnessed an increase in the difficult economic and political conditions regionally and globally, especially during the second half of the year with the China reduced the value of its currency, which sparked off fears of the prospects for the global recovery, and extended oil losses, while the security tensions continued in the region and generated an extremely cautious environment for banks,” said HE Sheikh Saleh Abdullah Kamel, Chairman of Al Baraka Banking Group.
“Therefore, we are very proud to see continuing growth in the revenue and business of Al Baraka Banking Group, and further elevation in its regional and global standing. This embodied once again the success of the business model that we followed since the founding of the Group, a model that reflects the true values of socially-responsible Islamic banking, supported by distinct human expertise and large and diversified technical and financial resources, which all have contributed to the translation of that model to the ambitious objectives and strategies and growing financial results and profitability. All these efforts were culminated with the transfer of the Group to the main headquarters in Bahrain Bay at the end of the last year, which is an architectural masterpiece that is equipped with all modern techniques and facilities, and would allow the Group to launch a new stage in its activities and businesses.”
