Following the conclusion of its Annual General Meeting (AGM), Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) announced that the assembly has approved the distribution of a 40% cash dividend for 2014, a 60% increase from the previous year.
The assembly also approved the bank’s 2014 financial statements. For the 12 months ended December 31, 2014, DIB reported a net profit of AED 2.8 billion, a significant increase of 63 per cent compared to AED 1.70 billion in 2013. The assembly also reviewed the Fatwa and Sharia Supervisory Board Report, and reappointedKPMGas the bank’s external auditors.
Commenting on the successful financial year, Mohammed Ibrahim Al Shaibani, Director-General of His Highness The Ruler’s Court of Dubai and Chairman of Dubai Islamic Bank, said, "2014 witnessed rapid growth across the bank, far ahead of the industry average, in spite of challenging market conditions. DIB continues to play a strategic role as a key contributor to Dubai’s long-term ambitions, in the emirate’s vision of becoming the capital of the Islamic economy. The 2014 performance is yet another milestone in our impressive journey, and as 2015 marks the 40th anniversary of the bank, we can look back with pride over the past four decades at all we have achieved, and the role we have played in spurring the rapid growth of Islamic finance in the UAE and across the world." Whist realizing its best ever performance in the bank’s rich history, DIB continued to build upon its existing franchise with expansion within and outside the home country. In May 2014, it completed a 24.9 percent acquisition of Bank Panin Syariah in Indonesia and intends to enhance this stake to 40 percent pending approvals from the regulator.
The bank’s healthy financial position was also reiterated by Fitch Ratings, which reaffirmed the bank’s Long-term Issuer Default Rating at 'A' with a stable outlook with both Fitch and Moody’s maintaining the outlook and ratings on the bank.
Illustrating growing international interest in the brand, DIB raised its foreign ownership limit to 25% last year, following which the bank scrip was chosen to be included in the MSCI basket when the UAE was upgraded to ‘Emerging Market’ status. Local, regional and international analyst coverage and investor interest has grown significantly as the bank continues to be one of the most actively traded stocks on the DFM.