Bahrain-based investment bank Gulf Finance House (GFH) has reported a net profit of $291 million for 2008, a decrease of 14%, compared to $340 million for 2007.
Earnings per share for 2008 were 37.01 cents, compared to 42.79 cents for 2007. Return on equity of 2008 stood at 31.62% and return on assets stood at 10.19%.
Gulf Finance House reported a loss of $10 million in the fourth quarter of 2008 primarily due to conservative provisions on investments. While annual profits have technically fallen, $84 million of the $340 million profits in 2007 were accounted for by the sale of 60% of GFH’s holding in Khaleeji Commercial Bank, a non-recurring exceptional item.
Khaleeji Commercial Bank, a wholly owned subsidiary of Gulf Finance House, has reported a net profit of BHD27.3 million or BHD27.58 per diluted share for 2008, an increase of 31%, compared to BHD20.8 million or BHD25.44 per diluted share for 2007.
Esam Janahi, chairman of GFH, said: While the fourth quarter proved challenging, it is important to view our results in the context of the global economic crisis. We’ve recorded a serious and competitive profit for the year in a difficult market. As a Sharia’a compliant bank we are not directly exposed to CDOs and similar asset classes and we continue to offer visionary investment opportunities in some of the world’s fastest emerging economies.
