By: Mahmoud Gamal
Dubai – Mubasher: Emirates Investment Bank (EIBank) is working on completing new investment transactions in the GCC states in different sectors, namely the food and beverage (F&B), healthcare and education sectors, the CEO of the Dubai-based lender has said.
The independent private bank is looking forward to reaping the fruit of these deals in the coming period in a bid to ensure achieving the highest value for its clients, Khaled Sifri told Mubasher in an interview.
In May, the bank was appointed to advising on the sale of a controlling stake in Country Hill International (CHI), a meat import wholesaler and supplier, to the Gulf Japan Food Fund (GJFF).
As for the Emirati bank’s fresh investment, Sifri noted that the Emirati lender has successfully implemented two deals in the healthcare and food sectors this year.
EIBank is seeking to execute further transactions in vital sectors such as the education sector in the GCC, Sifri said.
Although the bank had faced a slew of challenges and unfavorable conditions in the GCC, it achieved a net profit of AED 26.85 million during the first half of 2018, up 5.6% from AED 25.43 million in the prior-year period, Sifri added.
Moreover, the bank is looking to increase its customer base in the coming period, in addition to meeting their financial and personal needs.
Commenting on applying the International Financial Reporting Standards 9 (IFRS-9), Sifri said that implementing IFRS-9 will have a short-term impact on the banking sector, particularly banks need to absorb the slight increase in capital losses.
Translated by: Kholoud Mohamed Hussein
