Dubai Bank doubles profits to Dhs211m

Since its record breaking six-month conversion into an ethical and Shari'a compliant institution on 1 January 2007, Dubai Bank has emerged as one of the most progressive Shari'a compliant banks in the region, with the bank's total assets growing by 98% compared to 2006, from Dhs5.5bn to Dhs10.9bn. Shareholders equity grew by 219% from Dhs639m to Dhs2.04bn.

The bank's continuous achievements have resulted in increased confidence from its shareholders, Dubai Holdings and Emaar, witnessed by tripling of the share capital from Dhs500m in 2006 to Dhs1.5bn in 2007.

The branch network experienced aggressive expansion during 2007 at locations that are strategically spread across all emirates, taking the tally from 5 branches in 2006 to 15 branches by end of 2007.

Dubai Bank's combined portfolio of corporate and retail assets grew by 328% from Dhs1.2bn in 2006 to Dhs7.7bn in 2007. The total deposits portfolio grew by 73% from Dhs4.5bn to Dhs7.8bn.

His Excellency Mr. Mohammed Al Shaibani, Dubai Bank's Chairman and Director General of His Highness the Rulers Court in Dubai, said, 'The success of Dubai Bank was guided by the vision and foresight of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai, and with the unconditional support of His Highness Sheikh Hamdan Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid, Crown Prince of Dubai.'

He also added, 'The bank has witnessed significant progress on all fronts and across various business initiatives within retail, corporate and investment banking. Continuous and sustained achievements have not only resulted in strengthened support from the shareholders but also increased the confidence of our valued customers, which is evident in the growth of the bank's customer base.'

Throughout 2007, Dubai Bank launched a number of targeted and value-packed products and services that resulted in retaining and attracting both retail and corporate customers. The bank also enhanced its electronic delivery channels by launching SMS Banking and Internet Banking services.

Mr. Abdulaziz Al Muhairi, Dubai Bank's CEO and Executive Member of the Board of Directors said that,

'Since our conversion to an ethical and Shari'a compliant bank, we have witnessed phenomenal growth in our business and in the level of customer satisfaction. For us, innovation is a continuous process, as we aspire to be the service provider of choice. So far we have honoured this commitment and are dedicated to delighting our customers with consistent introduction of value-packed propositions, creativity and service quality.'

The bank has recently won multiple awards, including 'Best Islamic Bank in the Middle East' and 'Best Islamic Product Provider', from World Finance based in London.

While Dubai Bank's position has gone from strength to strength within the region in a relatively short time, the bank was successful in growing its business portfolios without compromising asset quality. This was confirmed by Fitch Ratings when it recently assigned Dubai Bank a Long-term Issuer Default rating 'A' with a Stable Outlook.

In addition to this the bank has successfully attracted new employee talent, especially UAE Nationals, while managing to retain the existing team. The UAE National percentage has seen an increase from 15% at the end of 2006 to 22% at the end of 2007.