KUWAIT: Boubyan Bank has announced outstanding financial results for the period ending 30 September 2023, with KD 61.1 million in net profits, at a growth rate of 26 percent compared with last year, with the earnings per share of 13.9 fils.
Boubyan Bank’s Vice-Chairman & Group Chief Executive Officer Adel Al-Majed stated: "Thanks to Almighty Allah, Boubyan Bank had a solid financial performance during Q3, and recorded a positive growth across all indicators and results. This reflects the success of our expansion plans, increase of our market shares, and progress in accelerating our growth and improving our overall operational performance.”
Al-Majed highlighted the most significant numbers recorded by the bank until the end of Q3 of this year, where the total customers’ deposits grew by 8 percent to reach KD 6.3 billion, while the bank’s financing portfolio grew by 5 percent to reach KD 6.1 billion, and the operating income grew by 7 percent to reach KD 163.2 million. Speaking of the bank’s market share, the bank’s share of local financing increased to 11.6 percent.
"Boubyan has been recording solid financial results ever since the beginning of 2023 despite the challenges and economic concerns worldwide, and the impact of high inflation. This solid performance, however, was achieved owing to the bank’s strategy and vision which fosters sustainable growth based on clear bases and approach”, he added.
Al-Majed thanked the executive management as well as all bank’s staff who are highly professional. He went on to recognize their efforts towards achieving the best results and positive indicators across all levels, making this year a special year in Boubyan’s journey, especially with additional expansion plans.
International awards and rankings
With steady steps, Boubyan Bank managed to be among the top Islamic financial institutions with many awards and international rankings received by the bank from a group of prestigious institutions, chief among which are Euromoney, Global Finance, and Service Hero during Q3.
The bank received 10 international awards and rankings in various business areas such as digital transformation, consumer banking, corporate finance, CSR, and SMEs support, whether locally or internationally, thus, reinforcing its leadership and status as a leading Islamic and digital financial institution.
Reinforcing financial inclusion
and digital transformation
Al-Majed went on to add: "During the past period, we witnessed improved expansion plans based on a group of digital financial inclusion reinforcement and implementation criteria, towards solid growth and rapid improvement that we will be seeing over the upcoming years to improve the digital Islamic banking industry.”
"Boubyan Bank is a pioneer in laying the foundations of digital transformation and offering digital solutions which made its mark in the Islamic banking sector. The bank now enjoys a clear banking and digital influence in shaping a promising future in Kuwait and the region as a whole amid the tough competition between business sectors”, he elaborated.
Boubyan has recently announced an integrated set of solutions available through its mobile App for both individual and corporate customers, such as the issuance of Visa-Oasis Digital Prepaid Card, the first of its kind in Kuwait, which offers credit solutions to customers and gives them the chance to collect air miles against their spending inside and outside Kuwait.
Similarly, the new "Saving Vault” service allows customers to create a vault for each saving target for the customer and helps him achieve it, whether for travelling or for the purchase of a certain product, while setting the necessary timeframe to achieve the final target. Additionally, the bank launched Boubyan Multicurrency Card, which allows customers to add 13 currencies of the most important tourist destinations to the card, where customers can add five different currencies of those to the wallet to use the card in their purchases during travelling or online with ease and assurance.
Moreover, the new "Card Auto Top Up” service was added, which makes it easy for customers to top-up their credit, prepaid, and digital cards automatically when they reach a certain balance without the need to do the same manually. The bank further offers the best and cutting-edge digital payment solutions to customers to ensure that they enjoy the most unique and comprehensive payment services such as Google Pay and Apple Pay services for retail customers.
Nomo Bank
Al-Majed elaborated: "Nomo Bank continues growing its customer base through its various partnerships to offer unique digital property finance solutions to customers in the UK market, thereby having a competitive advantages that meet the real estate market requirements for those willing to purchase investment or residential units; this, in fact, makes Nomo the best sharia-compliant property finance option in the United Kingdom.”
"Despite the relatively short span of Nomo in the market, its recent launch of many products and services puts it on par with top financial institutions, to offer a unique digital banking experience to customers that meets their expectations and needs while ensuring the highest levels of protection and security”, he pointed out.
Complete financing solutions
with competitive advantages
Al-Majed added: "Any development or innovation of a new service is the result of interaction with customers and constantly listening to their opinions to identify the basics and methodologies of development and change to improve the work environment and reinforce the products and services’ portfolio, and stimulate the same.”
The corporate sector is an integral part of Boubyan. In light of the challenges associated with offering various types of services and products to customers, currently there is a pressing need to provide innovative banking solutions that meet the commercial demands of customers, be they related to logistics or financial needs. This reflects the leadership of the bank and its prominent role in reinforcing the Islamic finance sector and financing mega corporate projects, and the accelerating growth of the finance industry by providing all means of support, innovative financing solutions, and the support necessary to many vital projects for its business banking customers.
Boubyan continues supporting its customers of the segment of local entrepreneurs by offering them a group of integrated financial solutions and exceptional benefits that allow them to manage their banking transactions smoothly and conveniently. Moreover, the bank has recently announced the SoftPOS service, using K-Net’s POS App, to complete payment transactions with any cards as an alternative to traditional POS terminals. This aims at reinforcing the banking products and services’ offerings, thus reflecting our ongoing approach to develop the digital infrastructure and to offer the best services in the field of digital payments.
In addition to this, there was the latest update for the e-Pay service, which enables the digital collection of payments. The new update added new payment solutions, most of which are offered for the first time in Kuwait, such as the "Payments Scheduling”, which allows customers to prepare payment links and arrange for them to be sent on specific due dates on a weekly, monthly, or annual basis, with the possibility of resending them as a reminder in case there is no response to the same or if they are not paid in the first time.
The e-Pay Mandoob service was also offered by Boubyan for the first time in Kuwait. The service maintains the confidentiality of a company’s accounts, making the owner or the person-in-charge the only person to have access to performed transactions, thus entitling the company’s representative "Mandoob” to merely collect the payments.
The bank continued strengthening its banking network through expansion of its network of branches, ATMs, and ITMs, thereby increasing its network of branches across Kuwait to 49 branches, with the aim of offering a unique banking experience to customers around the clock, especially through its digital channels to expand its banking services and solutions’ network, using the latest digital technologies.
Corporate social responsibility
The bank continued its CSR programs and continued strengthening the principles of sustainability within Boubyan’s strategy to deliver a message that made it always closer to various segments of the society through its various contributions that aim at increasing social awareness. This ultimately led the bank to be a role model to follow in CSR and sustainable development.
Boubyan Bank’s exclusive partnership with Yousif Al-Omran, the leader of community initiatives who goes in the media by the name Bu Jarrah, is an example of Boubyan’s proactive approach as this partnership aims to launch a group of social and environmental initiatives that focus on protecting the environmental system and foster sustainability as per international standards as a part of the campaign launched by Yousif Al-Omran under the slogan "Bu Jarrah Changes”.
Furthermore, Boubyan organized the Boubyan Adventure fest sports event on Failaka Island with the participation of a number of young trippers and adventurers of its customers. The event came as a part of the bank’s prominent contributions to promote awareness about health and sports, and to encourage participants to exercise on an ongoing basis and make this a lifestyle.
The bank continued supporting its human resources since they represent the main pillar for all its achievements. This was made through unique training strategies, academies, and programs, in addition to international certifications to sharpen their educational and practical skillsets and to increase their expertise so that they may benefit themselves, which would be reflected on customer service at Boubyan Bank.
•Growth of key performance indicators and results reflect the success of our business strategy and robustness of our financial position
• Boubyan is steadily enhancing its leadership in digital banking by offering products and services of high value to customers
Adel Al-Majed
Highlights
•For the third consecutive year, the bank supports CBK and KBA’s Be Aware Campaign "Diraya” to spread awareness about many banking aspects among citizens and residents. This comes in line with the bank’s CSR efforts.
•Boubyan Bank has been sponsoring many job fairs recently, as a part of the bank’s ongoing support to discover national talents and to offer job opportunities and training to the youths who are interested in starting a career in the banking sector.
•The bank continued supporting its human resources, especially its national cadres which account for more than 80 percent, while empowering women by appointing them in many leadership positions.