Doha, Qatar: QNB, the largest financial institution in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region, announced that the Board of Directors, during its meeting held yesterday has approved its results for the year ended 31 December 2023.
The Board of Directors of QNB Group have recommended to the General Assembly the distribution of a cash dividend of 65 percent of the nominal share value (QR0.65per share) after taking into account the solid financial performance recorded by QNB for the year ended 31 December 2023. The annual financial results for 2023 along with the proposed profit distribution are subject to Qatar Central Bank (QCB) approval.
Net Profit for the year ended 31 December 2023 reached QR15.5bn ($4.3bn), an increase of 8 percent compared to the same period last year. Operating Income increased by 11 percent to reach QR39.1bn ($10.7bn) which reflects the Group’s continued successful efforts in maintaining growth across a range of revenue sources.
Total Assets reached QR1,231bn ($338bn), an increase of 4 percent from 31 December 2022, mainly driven by growth in loans and advances by 6 percent to reach QR853bn ($234bn). Good growth in customer deposits contributed to increase customer deposits by 2 percent to reach QR857bn ($235bn) from 31 December 2022. This enabled the loans to deposits ratio to reach up to 99.5 percent as at 31 December 2023 reflecting a steady growth in QNB Group’s loan book.
QNB Group continued to maintain the efficiency (cost to income) ratio at 20 percent, one of the best ratios among large financial institutions in the MEA region.
The ratio of non-performing loans to gross loans reached 3.0 percent as at 31 December 2023, one of the lowest amongst financial institutions in the MEA region, reflecting the high quality of the Group’s loan book and the effective management of credit risk. Also during the year, QNB Group’s provision charge for loan losses decreased by QR0.1bn ($0.03bn) to reach QR8.7bn ($2.4bn), representing a decrease of 1% compared with previous year. QNB Group continued to maintain its coverage ratio at 100 percent.
Total Equity increased to QR110bn ($30bn), up by 4 percent from December 2022. Earnings per share reached QR1.55 ($0.42).
QNB Group Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) as at 31 December 2023 amounted to 19.8 percent. Also, Liquidity Coverage Ratio (LCR) and Net Stable Funding Ratio (NSFR) as at 31 December 2023 amounted to 206 percent and 105 percent respectively. These prudential ratios were higher than the regulatory minimum requirements of the Qatar Central Bank and Basel Committee.
QNB Group supported by more than 30,000 staff operating from approximately 900 locations and over 4,800 ATMs.