QNB Group Wins Two Top Awards at 3rd Annual Emeafinance

Doha, March 12 (QNA) - Qatar National Bank (QNB) - Group picked up two top awards at the 3rd annual emeafinance Middle East Banking Achievement Awards and charity dinner held at the Jumeirah Beach Hotel in Dubai.
Qatar National Bank was named the Best Asset Manager and QNB Capital which is the investment arm of QNB Group was named Best Local Investment Bank at the awards ceremony, which recognizes the success of leading banks across the Middle East in driving the growth of financial services in their markets.
The honorees included banks in the Middle East that, despite dramatic economic turns in the region overall, are still delivering impressive results, boasting rising profits and expanding within the region and internationally, led by prudent and effective balance sheet management and long-term strategies to deliver positive dividends to shareholders.
At the end of 2010, QNB Group's Net Profit exceeded QR5.7 billion, an increase of 35.8% over 2009, demonstrating its ability to record exceptional growth for the benefit of shareholders, with the return on average equity reaching 28.8% for 2010 compared to 25.4% for 2009.
Total Assets increased by 24.6% to reach QR223.4 billion. Loans and advances and financing activities reached QR131.7 billion, representing an increase of 21.1%, with the ratio of non-performing loans to total loans standing at 0.9% by December 2010, a clear indication of the Bank's success in implementing effective risk management procedures to maintain a high quality loan portfolio.
Customer deposits and unrestricted investment accounts in 2010 increased by 31.5% to reach QR165.5 billion, which has positively impacted liquidity as the loans to deposits ratio stood at 80% for 2010, compared to 86% for 2009.
QNB Group continued to be the country's leading player in asset and wealth management in 2010 and also facilitated significant transactions in the United Arab Emirates and Oman, resulting in growth of Assets under Management by 28% to QR13.0 billion(QNA)