Board of KFH and AUB have approved final share exchange ratio. Andrew Henderson / The National
Board of KFH and AUB have approved final share exchange ratio. Andrew Henderson / The National

Kuwait Finance House third quarter net profit rises 31.4%, beating estimates



Kuwait Finance House, the country’s biggest Sharia-compliant lender, said on Wednesday its third quarter net profit rose 31.4 per cent to 73.9 million Kuwaiti dinars (Dh893.4m) from a year-earlier period, beating analysts’ estimates.

The results were mainly due to “the increase in net operating income by 17.9 per cent, which resulted mainly from the increase in net financing income by 25.4 per cent,” it said in a statement to Boursa Kuwait, where its shares are traded.

The results beat the 57m dinars median estimate of two analysts polled by Bloomberg.

Total operating revenue increased 18 per cent to 131.7m dinars.

KFH is currently in talks to merge with Bahrain’s Ahli United Bank, a tie-up that could create a lender with $92 billion in combined assets. Arabian Gulf banks are on a deal spree as they seek to build scale, cut costs and increase profitability.

Nine-month profit rose 22.7 per cent to 169m dinars, the bank added.

KFH reported a 19 per cent rise in the second quarter net profit as income from financing and investments climbed.

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The lender, which owns 62.2 per cent of Turkey's Kuveyt Turk Participation Bank, said results from the country were affected by the financial crisis it is experiencing.

“Despite a real growth in the business, the decline in the Turkish currency rate against Kuwaiti Dinar during the third quarter of the current year has a negative impact on the consolidated balances as at the date of the interim condensed consolidated financial information,” it said in separate emailed statement.

Total assets fell 0.5 per cent to 17.4bn dinars at the end of the first nine months of this year compared with the same period a year earlier, partly because of the troubles in Turkey.

“Despite the sharp fluctuations in the Turkish lira, the position of KFH-Turkey is strong,” said chairman Hamad Al Marzouq in the statement.

“This is attributable to the credit facilities granted in Turkish lira, the credit facilities granted in hard currency as well as the good credit growth and the increased credit margin of financing which enabled the bank to overcome the impact of these fluctuations and mitigate risk."

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Get financially independent: Mr Cronin advises UAE residents to pursue financial independence. Start with a Google search and improve your knowledge via expat investing websites or Facebook groups such as SimplyFI. 

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'Top Gun: Maverick'

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Name: HyperSpace
 
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Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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The Travel Diaries of Albert Einstein The Far East, Palestine, and Spain, 1922 – 1923
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Engine: 3.0-litre six-cylinder turbo
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Sustainable Development Goals

1. End poverty in all its forms everywhere

2. End hunger, achieve food security and improved nutrition and promote sustainable agriculture

3. Ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all at all ages

4. Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all

5. Achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls

6. Ensure availability and sustainable management of water and sanitation for all

7. Ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable and modern energy for all

8. Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all

9. Build resilient infrastructure, promote inclusive and sustainable industrialisation and foster innovation

10. Reduce inequality  within and among countries

11. Make cities and human settlements inclusive, safe, resilient and sustainable

12. Ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns

13. Take urgent action to combat climate change and its effects

14. Conserve and sustainably use the oceans, seas and marine resources for sustainable development

15. Protect, restore and promote sustainable use of terrestrial ecosystems, sustainably manage forests, combat desertification, and halt and reverse land degradation and halt biodiversity loss

16. Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels

17. Strengthen the means of implementation and revitalise the global partnership for sustainable development