Manama: GFH, the Bahrain based Islamic investment bank, which on Sunday announced its rebranding said it was bidding farewell to high risk investments as part of its new strategy as being diligent, honest and smart institution in 2015 and beyond.
Addressing the Press conference, Dr. Ahmed Khalil Al- Mutawa Chairman of the board of directors spelled out the strategy saying the bank would be now more conservative in its approach once it comes to investments.
“We will not invest in high risk portfolios as we need to protect the investors’ interest and we will be more careful about the markets and products in future,” Dr Mutawa told The24X7News Bahrain (www.twentyfoursevennews.com).
Dr Al Mutawa, who was joined by Hisham Al Rayes, CEO of GFH, said that the GFH would also looking at the industrial sector and may go for acquisition if comes across any opportunity.
“GFH will continue to seek better opportunities as part of a new strategy aimed adding value and safeguarding investors’ interest,” Al Rayes said, adding that GFH as an institution has embarked on a new era as high risk will be no more choice for us.
“We are looking at high yield, secure markets as we have redefined our strategy and learnt a lot since 2008 when the entire industry witnessed tremors of economic upheaval,” he said.
Last week, GFH reported a net profit of $15.6 million for the first nine months of the year compared to $1 million in the corresponding period of 2013.
Total income was $121.1 million versus $30.5 million for first nine months of the previous year. The investment banking income for the period increased an impressive 75% year-on-year.
“It underscores that our strategy is working well and that the measures we have taken and investments made are paying off. The successful placement of the new investments during the quarter demonstrates the investors trust and renewed interest in GFH Investment products. We have just announced an exit from our prime London property investment and subject to conclusion of certain pending requirements; we expect to deliver a 21% return on investment (IRR) to our investors in a short nine-month period. These efforts continue to bolster our financial position and results and will see us end this year on a strong position,” Al Rayes quoted saying during the announcement of financials.
Results for the third quarter also showed significant improvement with profits of US$5.0 million compared to a net loss of US$3.2 million in the third quarter of 2013. Total income for the third quarter was up a sharp 532% reaching US$32.9 million versus US$5.2 million in the prior year period. Income during the quarter was primarily generated from placement fees for the Bank’s, investment products as well as from the settlement of liabilities for the bank.
Operating expenses for the nine-month period were US$95.5 million. Investment operations expenses were US$35.3 million compared to US$27.45 million during the first nine months of 2013.