Qatar Launches Largest Energy Bank with Capital of $10 Billion

Doha, March 19 (QNA) - The launch of the world's largest Energy Bank (under construction), scheduled for operations in the fourth quarter of 2019, was announced today, with an authorized capital of $10 billion, during a press conference organized on the sidelines of the 5th Doha Islamic Finance Conference held on Tuesday. The Energy Bank will be licensed by Qatar Financial Centre (QFC) to become the biggest bank of its kind globally, with representative offices in the MENA region and all over the world. Currently under formation, the bank is set to be an international investment entity that specializes in oil and gas, petrochemicals and renewable energy, offering first-class services to the energy industries, in compliance with the Islamic Shariah. HE Chairman of the Founding Committee of Qatar Energy Bank Khalid Bin Ahmed Al Suwaidi, said: "The bank will further Qatar's firm financial stance and will make us a significant key player on the global energy scene, a catalyst of growth in the regional energy sector, and the enabler of energy innovation." The bank is established by a team of experts specialized in the banking and energy industries bringing to the table their wide expertise, local and international relations, technical capabilities, and knowledge in the energy sector. It will offer competitive and innovative products, corporate and project financing, as well as asset management services. Chairman of the Media Committee of the Energy Bank, Dr. Mohammed Saleh Al Marri, said: "With investors from all over the world, the bank has an authorized capital of $10 billion and is expected to start its operations in the fourth quarter of 2019, with a paid-up capital of $2.5 billion." "Investors chose Qatar as the bank's headquarters because of its stable financial and banking systems and the legislative and regulatory environment that will enable the bank's success," he added. Chief Executive Officer at the QFC Authority Yousuf Mohamed Al Jaida, said: "We are very proud to welcome Qatar's first Islamic Energy Bank to QFC, an entity which strongly underlines our commitment to developing a robust financial ecosystem. This step fully aligns with the commitments we recently announced, reiterating our focus on the financial sector and specifically the Islamic Finance industry, locally and globally. The continued growth of both the Islamic Finance industry and the energy sector provides the necessary framework for the future success of the Islamic Energy Bank." The attendees elaborated that this economic initiative comes in light of the incredible growth projected for Qatar's energy sector, which has an extensive expansion plan to increase annual capacity to 110 million tons by 2024. The founding committee said the bank will provide consultancy services to energy entrepreneurs as well as financing. The financing profits will be determined by the nature of the project and the level of risk, noting that the bank is based on a Qatari idea and with international capital, operating under the QFC umbrella and targeting the local, regional and global markets. They added that the bank has an advisory body to examine all projects on the international market, as well as to examine the volatility of energy markets and the potential risks, although the bank will be far away from these risks, as there is no direct relationship between energy prices and the activity of the bank. The Energy Bank is an international Islamic investment bank based in Qatar with the mission of seeking, funding, and enabling conventional and renewable energy projects in the MENA region. The bank is operated by a team of experts, under the license of QFC, providing a variety of Shariah-compliant products and services to enable energy companies to cater to the rising market demand, whether locally or regionally. (QNA)