SIB posts Dh546M profit, proposes 10% dividend

dubai — Sharjah Islamic Bank (SIB), which recorded a 7 per cent increase in its total net profit in 2019, on Sunday proposed a 10 per cent dividend to shareholders.

In a statement, the bank said the dividend, including 5 per cent in cash and 5 per cent of bonus shares, was announced at the bank’s general assembly meeting in the presence of Abdul Rahman bin Mohammed Al Owais, chairman of the board of directors of SIB.

In 2019, the bank posted a net profit of Dh545.5 million compared to the Dh510.4 million recorded in 2018.

Al Owais said the positive financial results reflects the bank’s financial position and its reliable performance listed last June by credit ratings agency Standard & Poor’s. With a stable outlook, the bank’s total assets have grown by 3.7 per cent to reach Dh46.4 billion, compared to Dh44.7 billion at the end of 2018, he said.

He expected the performance of the bank to continue in 2020 amid expectations of a much stable banking sector, boasting of strong capital stocks and large liquidity, encouraging government spending plans, continuation of large projects, and the continued economic growth at strong levels, according to the global rating agencies.

Total operating income of the bank last year was Dh1.9 billion compared to Dh1.7 billion in 2018, an increase of Dh187.3 million, equivalent to a rise of 11 per cent. Net operating income last year amounted to Dh1.3 billion compared toDh1.1 billion in 2018, an increase of 19.9 per cent, equivalent to Dh216.1 million. General and administrative expenses reached Dh585.4 million in 2019, compared to Dh614.2 million in 2018, a decrease of Dh28.9 million.