Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB), the first Islamic bank in the world and the largest Islamic bank in the UAE by total assets, has posted a net profit of Dh5 billion ($1.36 billion) during 2018, up 11 per cent compared to Dh4.6 billion for 2017.

Total Income increased to Dh11.73 billion, up by 15 per cent compared to Dh10.199 billion for 2017, while net operating revenue grew to Dh8.202 billion, up 7 per cent compared to Dh7.687 billion for 2017.

Operating expenses reduced to Dh2.322 billion compared to Dh2.336 billion for 2017 and met operating income before impairment charges grew by 10 per cent YoY to Dh5.880 billion.

Mohammed Ibrahim Al Shaibani, director-general of The Ruler’s Court of Dubai and chairman of Dubai Islamic Bank, said: “Shariah-compliant banking is on the rise in markets around the world, and DIB, being amongst the top two Shariah-compliant banks in the world, is playing a key role here. We will continue our progress in spreading the popularity of Islamic banking, educating the market on its benefits, and shattering the myth that Shariah-compliant banking is limited to Muslims.”

“Our commitment to grow the Islamic capital markets has seen DIB participate and lead nearly USD 23 billion of sukuk and syndication transactions with our book of Sukuk investments growing to Dh31 billion this year,” he added.

DIB managing director Abdulla Al Hamli said: “The year saw us active in the capital markets as well. Early in 2018, we successfully priced $1 billion Sukuk issued with a 5 year tenor that reopened the regional FI and corporate Debt Capital Markets. Around the 2nd quarter, the rights issuance by the bank, which was aimed to boost the CET1, was massively oversubscribed generating nearly three times the required subscription. Both deals clearly highlighted the continued existence of the strong demand for DIB paper as well as the confidence which global investors have in the UAE’s largest Islamic bank.”

DIB Group chief executive officer Dr Adnan Chilwan said: “2018 net profit crossing Dh5 billion is a clear indication of the success of our sustained and continued execution of our proven strategy. Focus on profitability remains the core driver in our growth agenda, clearly evidenced by the strong net profit margin (NPM) of 3.14 per cent, which remains at the higher end of the market. Our ability to innovate around the dynamic market conditions gives us confidence that we will continue to outperform and take market share which has now moved to double digits at around 10 per cent.”

“Dubai has strongly positioned itself as a powerful advocate for the Islamic Finance industry as the nation seeks to secure its role as the global capital for the Islamic economy. The implementation of new economic and banking regulations, such as Basel III, IFRS 9 as well as VAT has benefitted the market financial metrics, and strengthened the economy across the UAE.

“We remain focused on returns with strong ROA (2.32 per cent) and ROE (18.1 per cent), both very much in line with our guidance for the year. Our growth in the coming years will be driven by digitalization as the market continues to transform. Having anticipated this revolution, we had initiated the change in our processes and systems a few years ago and 2019 promises to be an incredible year for the bank and the customers in this area. Customer experience and convenience, cost optimization and revenue enhancement remain the key pillars driving DIB as the Digitally Intelligent Bank,” he added. - TradeArabia News Service