Islamic Finance has been growing at twice the rate of
conventional financing in the region because of the
increasing range of financial instruments and services
that are now more readily available.
Enter QInvest, Qatar’s first and largest Islamic
investment bank. With authorized capital of $1b and paid
up capital of $500m and growing, the bank is making a huge
impact in Qatar and in other nations. Also, while the bank
currently focuses on doing business in the Middle East,
Malaysia, Indonesia, Africa, South Asia and Turkey, the
firm is well positioned to look at investment
opportunities further afield, in the U.S., Europe and
other parts of Asia.
QInvest is organized around four main business lines:
investment management, investment banking, pan-regional
brokerage, and wealth management. In every aspect, the
bank creates worldclass quality and benchmarks itself
against both Islamic finance and conventional banking
institutions. With a 40% stake in the bank, Qatar
Investment Bank (QIB) lends it notable credibility in the
marketplace. Other major investors across the Gulf region,
including major blue-chip companies, business groups and
private institutions, own the remaining 60%.
CEO Shahzad Shahbaz describes the two main strategic
investments the bank has made to expand the franchise.
“The first of these was our 44% investment in Panmure
Gordon, a 130-year old British brokerage firm. Their
expertise is important to us as we build the pan-regional
brokerage business. We’ve also made a 25% investment in
Ambit, one of India’s top investment banking firms. This
enables us to give our clients access to the Indian
market, in which there is an increasing interest,” he
says.
As for the near future, QInvest expects to launch a
regional private equity fund that will focus on growth
companies in the MENA region. “We also have plans for
several other investment initiatives tailored to
delivering value and which also reflect interests
expressed by our clients,” explains Shahbaz.
