Barwa Bank enjoys impressive profit bump in first quarter of 2015

Barwa Bank, one of Qatar’s leading Shari'ah-compliant financial institutions, has had a good first quarter, with net profits up four percent over the first three months of last year.

That four percent comes out to a total profit of more than $57 million, and the profit bump only tells part of the first quarter’s impressive story, since they are building on record-breaking numbers from 2014.

The bank’s year-on-year total assets jumped by 24 percent, showing the bank has spent considerable effort in bolstering its holdings.

That success has allowed the bank to extend its loan portfolio by more than 22 percent, meaning more of that growth is being sunk back into the financial needs of the community.

Barwa Bank Group Chairman Sheikh Mohamad bin Hamad bin Jassim Al Thani said the growth is the result of very targeted business and investment strategies.

“Our performance in the first quarter of 2015 is a reflection of this focused growth strategy,” Al Thani said. “While several landmark deals and partnerships that we had closed in 2014 offered us a head-start into this year, our Q1 results demonstrate Barwa Bank's commitment to long-term, carefully studied and cautiously progressive growth to both our group and our key stakeholders."

Those stakeholders enjoyed a rise in first quarter earnings per share over the year, going from QAR 0.66 in 2014 to QAR 0.70 in 2015.