Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB), the largest Islamic bank in the UAE by total assets, posted a group net profit of Dh3.011 billion ($819.78 million) for the first nine months of this year, up 7 per cent compared with Dh2.801 billion for the same period in 2015.

The total income increased to Dh6.410 billion, up 16 per cent compared with Dh5.526 billion for the same period in 2015, the bank said.

Net operating revenue increased to Dh5.048 billion, up 5 per cent compared with Dh4.788 billion for the same period in 2015.

Impairment losses declined to Dh304 million compared with Dh341 million for the same period in 2015, it said.

Cost to income ratio remained stable at 34 per cent compared with 34.1 per cent for the same period in 2015, in line with guidance for the year.

Net financing assets stood at Dh111.1 billion up by 14 per cent, compared to Dh97.2 billion at the end of 2015, in line with guidance for the year, it said.

The bank’s sukuk investments stood at Dh21.5 billion, an increase of 7 per cent, compared to Dh20.1 billion at the end of 2015.

Total assets stood at Dh171.5 billion, an increase of 14 per cent, compared to Dh149.9 billion at the end of 2015.

NPLs showing a consistent decline with NPL ratio improving to 4.4%, compared to 5.0% at the end of 2015.

Provision coverage ratio improved to 102 per cent, compared to 95 per cent at the end of 2015. Overall coverage including collateral at discounted value now stands at 152 per cent, compared to 147 per cent at the end of 2015.

Steady growth in customer deposits
Customer deposits stood at Dh121.8 billion compared to Dh110.0 billion at the end of 2015, up by 11 per cent.

Capital adequacy ratio remained strong standing at 18.2 per cent as of September 2016, as against 12 per cent minimum required.

Earnings per share stood at Dh0.49 for the nine months ending September 30, 2016 and return on assets was steady at 2.44 per cent. Return on equity stood at 17.4 per cent.

Mohammed Ibrahim Al Shaibani, director-general of The Ruler’s Court of Dubai and chairman of Dubai Islamic Bank, said: “Despite somewhat difficult times for the global economy, the UAE economy and banking sector continues to remain resilient with healthy profitability and strong capitalization levels across the industry. Dubai’s economic diversification has placed the emirate in a robust position to actively pursue its long term goals, particularly in the field of Islamic finance and economy. DIB’s strategy remains aligned to the emirate’s agenda as the bank has, once again, come out with a stellar performance despite the challenging environment.”

DIB managing director Abdulla Al Hamli said: “The bank’s year to date performance has been very encouraging on the back of the strategy we had embarked on in 2014. We are clearly positioning the bank strongly for future as we continue to progress steadily towards our strategic and financial aspirations. The sustained improvement in our asset quality throughout the last few years is a further testament to our continued discipline and proactive approach towards risk management. Our growth momentum remains solid driven by the expansion of our core business as we continue penetrate in existing and new sectors.”

DIB group chief executive Officer Dr Adnan Chilwan said: “Our balance sheet has grown by more than 50 per cent in under three years which, given the global economic environment, is a remarkable feat”, he added. “In doing so we have nearly doubled our financing book, yet managed to maintain a strong liquidity position. Finally, we have kept the interest of all stakeholders in mind, so while the shareholder’s returns have been growing with rising profitability, the asset quality and capitalisation remain strong and robust, a testament to both the quality of the financing book and the quality of risk management practices deployed within the bank. I look forward to another strong performance from DIB as we close 2016 and am confident of many more prosperous years ahead.” – TradeArabia News Service