- Weather
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Max |
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40°C |
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Min |
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30°C |
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Sunrise |
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05 : 30 AM |
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Sunset |
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06 : 30 PM |
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Humidity |
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50 to 80 per cent |
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- Prayer Time
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Fajar |
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03:56 am |
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Dhuhr |
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12:09 pm |
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Asar |
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03:30 pm |
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Magrib |
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06:51 pm |
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Isha |
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08:11 pm |
- Oil Price
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- Gold Price
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Price in RO
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24ct / gm |
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17.37 |
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22ct / gm |
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17.00 |
- Currency Rates
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Forex Rates vs R01
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US Dollar |
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2.60 |
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Euro |
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2.01 |
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Pound |
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1.72 |
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Indian Rs. |
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144.42 |
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Pak Rs. |
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255.85 |
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Bangla Taka |
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201.35 |
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AbdulAziz Al Balushi Pic: Supplied picture
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Muscat: ahlibank said its net profit soared by 19 per cent to OMR21.7 million for 2012 from OMR18.2 million reported for the previous year. Commenting on the bank's performance, Hamdan Ali Nasser Al Hinai Chairman of ahlibank said: "These financial results reflect a positive and strong operational performance and demonstrate the strength and resilience of ahlibank. We have taken a more conservative approach to strengthen the Bank's position to meet the challenges reflected in the broader global financial markets and ahlibank is on course to realise its vision to be one of the leading banks in the Sultanate."
The bank's customer deposits have grown by 10 per cent in line with its strategy to build a stable low cost deposit base, said a bank release. Loan growth of 21 per cent has been established with a prudent risk management approach and a diversified sectoral basis. The loan book continues to be of a very high quality as reflected in the non-performing loan (NPL) ratio of 1.1 per cent in 2012.
Net operating income has increased by 20 per cent to OMR42.04 million and operating expenses (excluding loan impairment net of recoveries) were controlled at OMR13.2 million resulting in a cost to income ratio of 31.3 per cent, which is about the lowest in the industry. ahlibank has been able to achieve sustained profitability while continuing to strengthen its balance sheet, said AbdulAziz Al Balushi, CEO of the bank. "Assisted by a prudent strategy of diversifying our funding sources, ahlibank remains highly liquid and well placed to support the financing needs of Oman, its economy and its people. Moreover, our rights issue, which was oversubscribed, served to underscore investor confidence in the bank's business model."
"Alongside our strong financial performance, 2012 has been notable for our continued drive to provide customers with a value added banking experience," AbdulAziz added. In the year 2012, the bank has also expanded its service offering with new licenses obtained from the Capital Market Authority (CMA). The new activities are portfolio management, fund management, issue management and issuer of structured instruments. The above activities are in addition to the licenses to provide brokerage and investment advisory services. The bank has established full fledged asset management and brokerage teams, with research capabilities utilising proprietary models and execution platforms catering to both equity and debt securities with a geographic coverage extending to include both the GCC and Mena region.
Islamic banking
During the year, the bank has been getting ready to launch the Islamic banking services. The bank has received the Islamic banking license from the Central Bank of Oman and will be launching five branches on January 29. Al Hilal Islamic Banking Services is set to offer a vast variety of Sharia-compliant banking solutions to customers in the different regions of the Sultanate .Our readiness is in compliance with the guidelines and regulatory framework prescribed by the Central Bank of Oman (CBO).
The Sharia'a Supervisory Board for ahlibank's Al Hilal Islamic Banking Services includes scholars from around the Middle East, comprising Prof. Ali Muhyealdin Al-Quradaghi, Dr. Fareed Mohammed Hadi Prof. Abdul Aziz Al-Qassar and Sheik Aflah Ahmed bin Hamad Al Khalili.
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