BARWA BANK GENERAL ASSEMBLY MEETING GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT MARKS 2010
Barwa Bank held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at which the financial results for 2010 were approved. The AGM was held on May 11, where shareholders listened to the financial reports and approved the agenda of the meeting.
H.E. Sheikh Mohamad Bin Hamad Bin Jassim Al Thani, Chairman of Barwa Bank gave a detailed report on the bank's activities and financial results approved by the board of directors, and highlighted the good results achieved by the bank in 2010.
Barwa Bank achieved a growth in net profit at 703% in 2010 scoring QR24.9m net profit compared to QR3.1m in 2009.
H.E. Sheikh Mohamad Bin Hamad Bin Jassim Al Thani, Chairman of Barwa Bank commented on the performance of the bank :”Barwa Bank started its operations during the well known difficulties that followed the world crisis, which caused major banks and financial institutions around the world to collapse, yet with God's grace, Barwa Bank managed to avoid the consequences of the crisis. Barwa Bank entered a highly competitive financial market in Qatar and managed in a short time to establish itself among the major institutions, thanks to its clear strategic vision and the commitment of the executive management to the values of innovation and quality in execution.“
“Consistent with our strategy for Barwa Bank to grow its customer base and offering to become one of the pioneering Sharia'h compliant financial groups in the region and the world, the bank acquired First Finance and First Leasing companies, (following the 2009 acquisition of The First Investor Company), to be all consolidated under Barwa Bank Group, which helped support the financial position of the bank, increase assets and grow market share” continued Sheikh Mohamad.
Milestones of 2010
- Completed the acquisition of First Finance, First Leasing and The First Investor companies and updated the shareholder database to enhance communication with them.
- Started the procedures to list Barwa Bank on the Qatar Exchange, expected to complete in 2011
- Launched a set of new Sharia'h compliant products and services, as well as developing the existing offering. E-banking services were among the most important achievements through SMS and Internet banking, call center and ATM network. The bank launched some notable retail and corporate finance product. Among these were the home finance offer, car finance and personal finance.
- Established “Business Banking Unit” to cater to the SME sector through a comprehensive range of Sharia'h compliant products and services aimed at supporting SMEs in line with the Qatar National Vision 2030
- At a regional level, the bank won “Best Retail Marketing Campaign” in April 2010 from “Banker Middle East Products Awards 2010” for its promotional campaign “111” for personal and car finance. In June, Barwa Bank received the recognition of the banking industry in the Middle East through the “Best New Bank” award from “Banker's Middle East Banks awards 2010”
- Barwa Bank sponsored the first Islamic Finance Conference in Doha with participation from major companies in Qatar. The sponsorship was part of Barwa Bank;s continuous contribution to highlight the importance of Sharia'h compliant banking as a stable growth option.
- Internally, Barwa Bank completed its senior managerial appointments to address the responsibilities and challenges ahead. In line with building local capacity, the bank has sent a number of Qatari students on scholarships to continue financial studies abroad. A number of training courses were held for the employees including banking and money laundry courses as well as English language development courses.
“ 2010 witnessed a strong leap forward for Barwa Bank, and we are confident that the positive supporting environment and promising opportunities in Qatar will be the foundation for greater achievements by Barwa Bank in years to come” concluded H.E. Sheikh Mohamad Bin Hamad Bin Jassim Al Thani, Chairman of Barwa Bank.
