• Revenue increased by 134% year on year, to
QAR 299 million (US$82.1 million)
• Net Profit reached QAR 88 million (US$24.2
million)
• Initiated dividend of 2% per share on par
value
QInvest, Qatar’s leading investment bank and one of the most prominent Islamic financial institutions globally, today unveiled significant revenue and profit growth in its audited full year 2014 results. The Bank reported strong top-line and bottom-line growth, ending the 12 month period with revenues up 134%, year-on-year, to US$82.1 million and net profit increasing by more than US$21 million, year-on-year, to US$24.2 million. Growth was achieved consistently throughout 2014; when revenues are compared with the same period the year before they were up 70% in Q1, 152% in Q2, 137% in Q3 and 122% in Q4.
Following QInvest’s AGM, which was held on 22 February 2015, the Board and Shareholders have approved a dividend for 2014 of 2% per share on par value.
H.E. Sheikh Jassim Bin Hamad Bin Jassim Bin Jaber Al
Thani, Chairman of QInvest, said:
“2014 was a year of very strong performance for QInvest
and I am pleased to report we are delivering on our
promise of driving consistent growth and profitability.
Despite the first half of the year being characterised by
subdued markets followed by a period of heightened
volatility in Q3 and Q4, all of our three
revenue-generating business lines continued to grow. We
advised on a significant number of high-profile
transactions around the world, reinforcing the QInvest
brand in the region and further afield. I am very pleased
to see the Bank report a significant increase in revenue
and profit, and the distribution of a dividend of 2% per
share on par value.”
Tamim Hamad Al-Kawari, Chief Executive Officer of
QInvest, said:
“Over the course of the year, we strengthened our
platform, launched a number of successful strategic and
product initiatives and advised on numerous transactions.
Crucially, all of this was achieved while strengthening
and expanding relationships with existing clients. Looking
to 2015, while we expect equity and commodity markets to
stabilise as we move through the year, there is still much
uncertainty. As such, we will remain prudent and focused
on executing our healthy pipeline of deal flow, taking
advantage of our unique market positioning to leverage
opportunities and deliver value for all our clients and
shareholders.”
Investment Banking
The debt capital markets business continued to generate
significant global mandates. The team completed Sukuk
transactions with an aggregate value of US$3.5 billion
including transactions for Goldman Sachs, the governments
of Hong Kong and Luxembourg, Kuveyt Turk, Dar El Arkan,
Turkiye Finans and Al Baraka Turk. So far in 2015, QInvest
has won mandates for Sukuk offerings around the
world.
In 2014 QInvest closed over US$200 million of structured
finance transactions, successfully syndicating to top tier
Islamic financial institutions. These included a number of
industry firsts in terms of structure complexity and
financial innovation. QInvest also successfully recycled
US$217 million of balance sheet assets, indicating strong
regional and international demand for our financing book,
which continues to grow within the firm’s risk-return
profile, providing stable recurring income as well as
immediate returns for the firm.
Meanwhile, QInvest’s M&A franchise executed transactions with a total value of c.US$3.1 billion and the team is currently working on transactions across a range of sectors.
Principal Investments
The Principle Investments team maintained its focus on
investments that provide short term profitability and long
term value creation within a manageable risk framework.
The Real Estate team continues to see significant interest
from shareholders and clients for real estate investments
and, in 2014, invested capital into a portfolio of retail
assets in France and Spain, with France providing stable
yields whilst Spain offers capital and rental growth.
Meanwhile, the team exited two real estate investments in
2014 and is looking to redeploy that capital into
opportunities which are aligned with the firms overall
risk-return profile.
Elsewhere, QInvest is continuing to deploy capital in the Sukuk market, capitalising on opportunities arising from the global and regional macroeconomic conditions. The unit is also actively managing its private equity portfolio with the dual objective of optimising returns and reducing balance sheet risk exposure. In 2014, QInvest exited its investment in FIITJEE, VLCC and a significant proportion of SUEZ Environment.
Asset Management
2014 was a robust year for the Asset Management business,
with the unit able to capitalise on the processes,
infrastructure and resources which were put in place over
the last two years. The QMAP capability was expanded into
fixed income through the addition of a new in-house
managed Sukuk fund. Additionally, the team launched and
rolled out “Shiraa Funds,” offering clients a strong risk
adjusted return. Both QMAP products and Shiraa Funds have
been added to the Allfunds Bank platform, which has more
than €147 billion (US$187 billion) in assets under
administration.
QInvest also completed the acquisition of the former Qatar Islamic Bank United Kingdom (QIB UK) Asset Management unit. This acquisition includes the highly successful Luxembourg domiciled EFH fund series, including the EFH Global Sukuk Plus Fund and the EFH Islamic Financial Institutions Fund, and customised Sukuk and income portfolios.
The Qatar portfolio delivered a full year return of 29%, which significantly outperformed both the market and its peers. The division will be launching fund versions of our existing Qatar equity and GCC equity discretionary portfolios in 2015; in addition to a European fund and other funds.
Awards
QInvest was recognised by a number of international bodies
for its achievements in 2014. These include:
• “Best Investment Bank in Qatar” at the
Euromoney Awards for Excellence
• “Best Local Investment Bank, 2014” by EMEA
Finance
• “Most Respected Islamic Fund Manager in
Qatar, 20014” by Acquisition International
Magazine
• “Best Islamic Real Estate Finance Provider,
2014” by Global Finance Magazine
• “Best Sukuk Structuring House in the Middle
East” at the London Sukuk Summit
• “Best Sukuk House, Qatar”, “Best Islamic
Asset Management House in Qatar” and
“Best Deal in Qatar” at The Asset
Triple A Awards