Qatar National Bank (QNB), a leading bank in the Middle East, Africa and Southeast Asia region, has posted a net profit of QR7.4 billion ($2 billion) for the six months ended June 30, 2019, up 4 per cent over the previous year.

Total assets reached QR887 billion ($244 billion), up by 5 per cent from June 30, 2018, the highest ever achieved by the group, said a statement from QNB.

Loans and advances grew by 5 per cent to reach QR634 billion ($174 billion), which contributed to the growth in total assets. Growth in the loan book was mainly funded by customer deposits which also grew by 5 per cent to reach QR646 billion ($177 billion) as on June 30, 2019, it said.

Strong funding sources helped QNB Group to maintain the loans to deposits ratio at 98.3 per cent as on June 30, well within the regulatory limit.

The ratio of non-performing loans to gross loans amounted to 1.9 per cent during the same period, a level considered one of the lowest amongst financial institutions in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, reflecting the strong quality of the group's loan book and effective management of credit risk, it added.

The group’s conservative policy with respect to provisioning resulted in the coverage ratio maintained at 106 per cent as at June 30.

QNB Group capital adequacy ratio (CAR) as at June 30 amounted to 18.4 per cent, higher than the regulatory minimum requirements of the Qatar Central Bank and Basel Committee.

During the first half of 2019, QNB successfully closed the syndication of its €2.0 billion ($2.256 billion) three-year senior unsecured term loan facility, successful completion of a $1.0 billion bond issuance and a $850 million Formosa bond issuances under its Euro Medium Term Note (EMTN) Programme in the international capital markets.

All of the above-mentioned deals attracted strong interest around the world from key global investors, reflecting investors' confidence in QNB Group's financial strength and its position as the largest financial institution in the MEA region.

It also reflects their trust and confidence in QNB Group's strategy over the coming years.

QNB continued its outstanding achievements by topping the MEA region, on the Banker magazine's Top 1000 World Banks list.

QNB Group serves a customer base of 24 million supported by 30,000 staff resources operating from more than 1,100 locations and 4,400 ATMs, it added. – TradeArabia News Service