Alinma Bank posted ‘exceptional’ results in Q2 2019: CEO

Alinma Bank’s second quarter 2019 results were “exceptional” as the bank posted record profits, CEO Abdulmohsen Al-Fares told CNBC Arabia on Sunday.

Al-Fares noted that for the first time, Zakat was deducted from net profits instead of shareholders’ equity.

Commenting on a decision reducing interest rates, he said that lower financing costs will boost investments, which in return will increase the banks’ market share in terms of finance.

Nevertheless, the decision might lead to a decrease in deposits’ cost and consequently might have an impact on the profitability of some banks, yet not significantly, Al-Fares added.

The bank’s market share in terms of financing has increased to around 7 percent, while the bank’s investment portfolio rose by 31 percent to SAR 21 billion. 

He attributed the bank’s profits mainly to the financing and investment portfolios.

The bank posted SAR 1.314 billion in net profit for the first half of 2019, a 12 percent rise compared to a year earlier, while the second quarter 2019’s profits stood at SAR 676 million.