UAE banks assets rise 8% in 2012

The Board of Directors of UAE Banks Federation held its first meeting at the Mashreq Bank Headquarter in Dubai, Headed by H.E. AbdulAziz Abdulla Al Ghurair, Chairman of UAE Banks Federation; the Board members unveiled its annual report for 2012 and discussed the federation business plan for 2013 in addition to the major activities, topics and issues the Federation handled since last meeting.

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Middle East banking industry registered 6.9% increase in 2012, says study

According to a new study by The Boston Consulting Group (BCG), the banking industry in the Middle East settled at single digit revenue growth in 2012 with a 6.9 percent increase. The increase in profits was slightly higher at 8.1 percent, stemming largely from extraordinary income sources. Read more

Abu Dhabi banks keep growing

Growth in lending across Abu Dhabi’s top banks kept its slow pace during the first half of 2012. Profits, however, were higher than those in the previous year, perhaps attributed to high credit card interest rates and increased banking fees. At the mean time, the emirate’s banking sector is preparing to follow a new rule from the Central Bank of the UAE whose aim is to limit exposure to government-related entities (GREs). Read more

How Banks Can Improve Their Social Media Presence

Every week there are new studies that try to analyze the tendencies in social media. Recently, one such study found that the banking industry is not doing very well on the social websites. According to the research, there are many banks, both small and large, which have pages in the social websites. Nevertheless, most of the users share that they find banks’ presence online to be quite apathetic.

• Further reading: Dubai Corporates hesitant about Social Media, PR Boss

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UAE banking profits seen soaring

UAE banking profits seen soaring at 22%YoY in 2012

Banks are nearing end of the NPL cycle but risks remain

ADCB & ENBD are most susceptible to capping of interest on credit cards

UAE banking profits to rise 22%YoY in 2012

After a tough year in 2011, aggregate profits of our banking universe rose 30%YoY due to one-off gains but remained stagnant otherwise. The current year is expected to bear sweeter fruit, with one-off adjusted profits rising 22%YoY. Bottom-line growth is anticipated to be driven by drop in provisions (down 13%YoY) while top-line slows down to 3 – 5% due to pressure on spreads and dampened volumes. Read more

Top-line performance of GCC banks continues to improve

GCC banking profitability rose 8%YoY

GCC banks witness 67%YoY jump in provisions, driven largely by Kuwait

All countries under coverage performed poorly than expected in the quarter

GCC banking profitability underwent a rise of 8%YoY in 4Q11, profits drop QoQ

GCC banks under our coverage saw their profits improving by 8%YoY, though the same slid by 13%QoQ. This was the second consecutive quarterly slip during the year after the banks reached the highest quarterly profit ever in 2Q11 since 2Q08. Kuwait was the only country that witnessed a decline in profits YoY, down 22%YoY, while Qatar saw the highest growth up by a similar figure. On a QoQ basis, all the countries saw a decline in profitability, again with Kuwait exhibiting the highest decline and Qatar, the lowest. Read more

UAE most competitive banking market in GCC

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) reports today that the UAE remains the most competitive banking market in the GCC, a key finding from its proprietary “GCC Banking Competitiveness Report.”

The recent issue of the report confirms that the UAE remains the most competitive banking market in the region. The country’s population of approximately 8 million is served by 51 banks with more than 840 branches and over 4,000 ATMs, delivering high levels of service, yet lower profitability than its GCC counterparts. ADIB further notes that UAE banks’ net interest margin, which is the spread between what banks pay for deposits and what they charge for financing and loans remains the lowest among the GCC, at an average of 2.9%. Saudi banking spreads are currently closer to 3.5%, Qatar at 3.4% those of Kuwait banks are at around 3.2%. Read more

Banks Holiday on occasion of 40th National Day and Hijri New Year

All banks in UAE will remain closed from Thursday 1st December until Saturday 3rd December on the occasion of 40th National Day and Hijri New Year, according to a Central Bank circular issued today.

The banks will resume operation on Sunday, according to the official news agency WAM. Read more

Banks have problems, because they are greedy

A worrying culture of greed, increasing pressure from regulations, “rubbish” advertising and growing opportunities in Qatar were the key topics that topped a packed agenda at MEED Retail Banking 2011, held in Dubai from October 4-5.

Proving once again that MEED Retail Banking is the stand-out event for the industry, it was the comments by Abdul Aziz Al Ghurair, Chief Executive Officer of Mashreqbank, that made the most impact.

“The banks have had problems because they have been greedy,” Al-Ghurair told assembled senior executives from across the Gulf at the Address Hotel, Dubai Mall. He said that banks must become more customer-oriented rather than approaching them solely for the purposes of selling products. Read more

Linklaters opens an office in Abu Dhabi

Linklaters, the global law firm, has launched its newest office in Abu Dhabi, further strengthening the firm’s well-established presence in the Middle East.

The launch of the office builds on Linklaters’ successful 30-year track-record of advising governments, sovereign wealth funds, banks, corporates and project sponsors in the Middle East. It bolsters Linklaters’ presence in the Middle East, where the firm has had an office in Dubai since 2006, and reflects the increasing work Linklaters has been doing in Abu Dhabi, including IPIC’s public takeover of CEPSA in Spain and ADCB’s disposal of its stake in RHB in Malaysia, two of the largest M&A deals from Abu Dhabi in the last 12 months. Read more

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