Tribune News Network
Doha
The annual general assembly meeting (AGM) of QIB has approved the board of directors’ proposal to distribute 72.5 percent cash dividends of the nominal value per share which amounts to QR0.725 per share.
Speaking on the occasion, QIB Chairman Jassim bin Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani said, "Looking back at the 2023 fiscal year, in a challenging operating and macro environment QIB delivered a record net profit of QR4.305 billion. Our dedication to leveraging technology, optimising costs, and prioritising customer needs has allowed us to emerge as the most efficient bank in the world with a cost-to-income ratio of 17.1 percent.”
Furthermore, he said, "We generated an ROA of 2.3 percent, the highest in the Qatari market, and an ROE of 17.3 percent, well above the local market average. The implementation of an effective risk management framework, including the integration of ESG principles in our credit policies & procedures, has enabled us to maintain our high asset quality and the lowest non-performing financing assets ratio of 1.7 percent in the Qatari banking sector. In November 2023, QIB issued a $500 million five-year Sukuk. The transaction was met with strong demand, with an oversubscription rate of 6.6 times.”
He said, "Through continuous investments to accelerate digital banking across the bank, we have grown digital adoption to 79 percent of our customers by 2023, and 99 percent of all transactions are now self-serve transactions replacing branch transactions digital sales through the mobile app for key products, such as personal finance and credit cards, contributed more than 50 percent of our total sales volume in 2023.”
"We introduced more than 50 new, innovative digital features last year across all our channels for individual and corporate customers. Many of our innovative digital products and services are introduced in Qatar. Key innovations introduced in 2023 include the QIB Lite App, a first-of-its-kind simplified version of the QIB Mobile App available in multiple languages to support financial inclusion, as well as the introduction of the Carbon Emission Tracker to create sustainability and environmental awareness among our customers,” he said.
"We have also digitalised all our credit, debit, and pre-paid cards eliminating the need to have a physical card for shopping at online and physical stores while we have launched a new Retail Marketplace – a platform which provides a hassle-free, comprehensive shopping experience with competitively priced products to our customers.
"Expanding on our ESG (Environmental, Social & Governance) initiatives in 2023, we truly believe that QIB has an important role to play in creating a more inclusive and sustainable future – from removing barriers to economic inclusion to supporting our customers and evolving our operations to mitigate the impacts of a changing climate. As we work towards our own sustainability goals, we will be supporting our customers alongside their ESG transitions, by providing innovative sustainable finance solutions,” he said.
Looking back at the 2023 fiscal year, he said, QIB had achieved positive progress, cementing its position as one of the largest Islamic banks internationally. The total assets of the bank now stand at QR189.2 billion. Customer deposits stand at QR120.8 billion, and total income reached QR11.1 billion representing a strong growth of 24 percent compared to 2022. QIB continues to pursue the conservative impairment policy maintaining a healthy 87.5 percent coverage ratio for non-performing financing assets by the end of 2023.