ASSET MANAGEMENT LEADS KUWAIT’S GIH TO RECORD THREE-FOLD PROFIT INCREASE

▶ Net profit at Gulf Investment House increases to 2.7 million Kuwaiti dinars in a first half of ‘excellent results’

MAHMOUD KASSEM

Global Investment House (GIH), the Kuwait-based regional investment bank, said that its first half profit tripled, boosted by growth in its asset management business.

Net profit rose to 2.7 million Kuwaiti dinars (Dh32.8m) in the first six months of the year compared to 900,000 dinars in the same period last year.

The investment bank said it had total revenues of 8.4m dinars in the first six months of the year without giving a comparative figure for last year.

Fees and commissions generated 5.8m dinars for the GIH in the first half, while the asset management business raked in 5.3m dinars.

“The company produced excellent financial results during the first half, reporting a many fold increase to the net profit,” said Hareb Al Darmaki, the chairman of GIH.

“Continued profitability of asset management business resulted from effective implementation of our strategies and positive sentiment in the regional equity markets.”

The company’s assets under management stood at 1 billion dinars at the end of the six months.

The investment bank said that during the first half its real estate asset management closed two acquisitions and a placement in the United Kingdom in equity to the tune of £28m (Dh135.9m).

Meanwhile, the investment banking team contributed 400,000 dinars to revenues in the first half from three merger and acquisition mandates as well as advisory services.

GIH noted that its investment banking team was currently working on several regional mandates and that it had a pipeline of other work.

Elsewhere, it said it intensified its efforts to grow its institutional brokerage business and that during the first half, brokerage fee revenues stood at 500,000 dinars. It did not give a comparative figure for last year.

“We are delighted by these financial results which reflect the company’s robust business model and trust our clients and stakeholders in the company,” said Abdul Wahab Al Halabi, the director and chief executive of GIH.

The investment bank said it had total revenues of 8.4m dinars in the first six months of the year