DIB posts profits, but shares fall

In its original version, the following story incorrectly said that Dubai Islamic Bank's rise in profits failed to impress the stock market.
Although shares of the bank fell during trading on Tuesday, the market had already closed before the results were released. In addition, the story said that the bank posted a profit of Dh1.73 billion (US$471 million) in the third quarter. The story should have said the figure was for the first three quarters. We regret the errors. Dubai Islamic Bank's (DIB) posted a rise in profits after a fall on the markets, with its shares falling nearly nine per cent today. The UAE's first Shariah-compliant financial services firm posted a profit of Dh1.73 billion (US$471 million) in the first three quarters, an increase of 35 per cent compared with the Dh1.28bn reported during the same period last year. The firm's total assets increased 17 per cent to Dh86.8bn as of Sept 30, compared with Dh74.1bn in the corresponding period last year. The bank's impressive performance comes despite recent allegations of corruption. Last week, Saad Abdul Razak, the former group chief executive of DIB, was arrested in connection with an inquiry into alleged corruption and financial misappropriation at the bank's property development affiliate, Deyaar. "I am very pleased to share our positive financial results for the first nine months of this year," said Mohammed Ibrahim al Shaibani, the chairman of DIB. "Operating in a challenging global economic environment, the bank continues to demonstrate the strength of its fundamentals and the soundness of its long-term strategy of diversifying its operations and revenues." The firm reported an increase of 18 per cent in customer deposits to reach Dh68bn in the past nine months, compared with Dh57.5bn in the same period last year. In the previous quarter, DIB, through a joint venture with Jordan Dubai Capital and Dubai International Capital, announced a strategic investment in Industrial Development Bank of Jordan, leading to the creation of Jordan Dubai Islamic Bank, a Shariah-compliant institution. shamdan@thenational.ae