Commercial Bank of Qatar. Financial Results for the half-year ended 30 June Commercialbank delivers 17% increase in net profit to QR 956 million

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1 Commercial Bank of Qatar Financial Results for the half-year ended 30 June 2011 Commercialbank delivers 17% increase in net profit to QR 956 million Wednesday 27 July 2011, Doha, Qatar: Commercial Bank of Qatar ( Commercialbank or the Bank ) announces its financial results for the half-year ended 30 June The Bank delivered a strong net profit of QR 956 million which was up 17% from QR 818 million in the first half of 2010 and was up 14% or QR 63 million in the second quarter over the first quarter of Key financial highlights Net interest income up 8% to QR 861 million Non-interest income up 25% to QR 553 million Net profit up 17% to QR 956 million Earnings per share of QR 4.0 Customer loans and advances up 19% at QR 39.8 billion Customers deposits up 14% to QR 34.7 billion His Excellency, Abdullah Bin Khalifa Al Attiyah, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Commercialbank said, The Qatar economy continues to improve and, despite recent regional events, the outlook for growth is positive. In the second quarter, the Private Sector has shown signs of recovery with the Government s planned spending programme expected to deliver additional stimulus as the year progresses. Commercialbank has demonstrated its ability to identify opportunities to grow its business in the first half of the year and this will remain our focus for the remainder of

2 Financial Performance Mr. Hussain Al Fardan, Commercialbank s Managing Director, commented on the first half s financial performance, Commercialbank has delivered strong first half results. The realigned business is delivering operational and financial improvements and we are pleased to see positive trends emerging as we continue to develop our lending and income streams. The Bank s focus in the second half of the year will be to maintain the momentum we have built in the first half. Net operating income was up 14% to QR 1.4 billion for the six months ended 30 June 2011 compared with QR 1.2 billion for the same period in Net interest income grew by 8% to QR 861 million in the first half of 2011 compared with QR 801 million in 2010 despite a slight contraction in the net interest margin to 3.6%. Non-interest income increased by 25% to QR 553 million in 2011 against QR 442 million in the prior year. The increase of QR 111 million was due to an increase in gains on investments and dividend income of QR 71 million, higher fee and commission income and improved performance from the Islamic business. Net fee and commission income was up 7% to QR 328 million compared with 2010 due to higher loan-related fees and credit card revenue. Net fee income was up 26% to QR 183 million in the second quarter compared with the first quarter of The Bank s total operating expenses were up by 10% to QR 423 million in 2011 from QR 384 million in the first half of 2010 due to increased staff costs (including a one-off charge of QR 6 million for early staff departures), higher marketing expenditure and costs associated with the business transformation programme and the strategic outsourcing partnership. The cost to income ratio decreased to 28.1% in the first half of 2011 from 29.3% in the same period in The Bank s net provisions for loans and advances increased to QR 88 million in 2011 from QR 61 million in the first half of However the net provision reduced to QR 35 million in the second quarter of 2011 from QR 53 million in the first quarter, and from QR 49 million in the second quarter of Asset quality is improving with the non-performing loan ratio reducing to 2.99% at 30 June 2011 from 3.16% at 31 December The provision of QR 37 million required against the Bank s investment portfolio for the six months ended 30 June 2011 was lower than the provision of QR 47 million taken in The Bank s total assets have increased by 18% to QR 67.7 billion at 30 June 2011 compared with QR 57.4 billion at the end of June 2010, and were up by 8% from QR 62.5 billion at 31 2

3 December The increase in total assets was due to growth in loans and advances to customers and in financial investments. Loans and advances to customers were up by 19% to QR 39.8 billion at 30 June 2011 against QR 33.6 billion at the end of December 2010, an increase of QR 6.2 billion. Financial investments were up by QR 2.7 billion since the end of December 2010 due, primarily, to the issuance of a three-year bond of QR 1.5 billion by the Government in January 2011 and an increase in Qatar Central Bank Certificates of Deposits of QR 0.8 billion. Customers deposits increased to QR 34.7 billion, 4% higher than at the end of December 2010 and up 14% compared with QR 30.4 billion at 30 June The Bank s capital adequacy ratio was 18.9% as at 30 June 2011 compared with 18.5% at the end of On 17 January 2011 the Bank received the third and final subscription from Qatar Investment Authority on behalf of Qatar Holding ( QH ), its subsidiary, and at an Extraordinary General Assembly of the Bank held on 21 February 2011 shareholders gave approval to issue 20,620,530 new ordinary shares to QH, increasing its shareholding in Commercialbank to 16.7%. The Bank s capital position remains well above the Qatar Central Bank s minimum required level of 10%. Andrew Stevens, Commercialbank s Group Chief Executive Officer, said, Commercialbank has built on the encouraging performance in the first quarter of the year to deliver strong first half results. We have grown our loan book by QR 6.2 billion in a market in which demand for borrowing is gradually improving. This demonstrates our progress in implementing the strategic realignment of our corporate and retail businesses and the development of the Bank s domestic franchise; our strategic outsourcing partnership is on track and we have developed new revenue streams through our insurance and brokerage businesses. Each of the alliance banks has grown their franchise in their own domestic market in 2011, delivering increased lending and revenue. We remain focused on the key areas of balance sheet management, asset quality and risk management and will look to continue development and growth of the business in the remainder of the year. Associates 3

4 Commercialbank s associates have contributed QR 89 million to the Bank s performance in the first half of 2011 compared with QR 68 million for the half-year ended 30 June National Bank of Oman ( NBO ) has delivered improved net profit after tax of RO 17.1 million for the six months ended 30 June 2011 compared with RO 14.6 million in the same period for Net operating income grew by 12% to RO 45.7 million year-on-year from RO 40.7 million in 2010 with net interest income increasing to RO 28.3 million and non-interest income growing by RO 4.5 million to RO 17.4 million. Provisions for loan losses were RO 1.6 million lower at RO 4.4 million in During the first half of 2011, NBO s total lending to customers grew by 14% to RO 1.55 billion. United Arab Bank ( UAB ) recorded a net profit of AED 133 million for the half-year ended 30 June 2011, lower than the net profit of AED 141 million achieved in the same period in Net operating income increased by 11% to AED 257 million in 2011 from AED 233 million in the first half of 2010 due to growth of 14% in net interest income to AED 183 million. UAB grew its loans and advances to customers by 28% to AED 6.6 billion at 30 June 2011 from AED 5.2 billion at the end of June UAB s operating expenses were up by 9% to AED 89 million from AED 82 million in 2010 due, mainly, to investment in new branches; UAB has opened 4 new branches in the last twelve months. Provision for credit losses increased to AED 36 million in 2011 compared with AED 10 million in the same period in 2010 reflecting the impact of the new UAE Central Bank provisioning guidelines. - END - 4

5 - For more information please contact: Faith Newnham Manager, Investor Relations Commercialbank Tel: Hugh Barker Senior Vice President Financial Dynamics Tel: Notes to Editors About Commercialbank Commercialbank has total assets of QR 67.7 billion as at 30 June As a full service commercial bank, the Bank offers a full range of corporate, retail, Islamic, and investment banking services as well as owning and operating exclusive Diners Club franchises in Qatar and Oman. The Bank s countrywide network includes 34 full service branches and 146 ATMs. Profitable in every year since incorporation in 1975, continual investment in technology and human capital, together with a strong capital base and underwriting capability, provides a solid foundation for continued growth. A successful diversification strategy has expanded Commercialbank s GCC footprint through strategic partnerships with associated banks, the National Bank of Oman (NBO) in Oman and United Arab Bank (UAB) in the UAE. NBO, the second largest bank in Oman with total assets of RO 2.0 billion as at 30 June 2011, has 70 branches in Oman, 3 branches in Egypt and 1 in Abu Dhabi. UAB is headquartered in Sharjah, with total assets of AED 8.4 billion as at 30 June 2011 and operates 14 branches in the UAE. Commercialbank enjoys strong credit ratings of (A) by Fitch, (A1) by Moody s and (A-) by Standard & Poor s. The Bank is listed on the Qatar Exchange and was the first Qatari bank to list its Global Depository Receipts (GDRs) as well as bonds on the London Stock Exchange. Additionally, Commercialbank s Swiss Franc bond issuance in December 2010, listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange, is the first public bond issuance by a Qatari bank in Switzerland. The Bank is dedicated to supporting Qatar s community and social infrastructure through various CSR programmes and sponsorship of events such as the Commercialbank Qatar Masters Golf Tournament. 5