The Board of European Islamic Investment Bank plc (“EIIB”, the “Bank”, the “Company”) are pleased to announce its results for the year ended 31 December 2006.
HIGHLIGHTS
• Total operating income of £7.8M, up by 104% (2005: £3.8M).
• Profit before tax of £1.89M up by 3% (2005: £1.84M)
• Earnings per share 0.07p (2005: 0.11p)
• Balance sheet of £236M - up 110% (2005: £112M)
• Equity capital base stands at £186M up 67% (2005: £111M)
• Participated as a manager / underwriter in eight sukuk and medium term financings
• Announced two funds – Pan European Real Estate (PERF) and Structured Equity Fund (SEF)
• Opened a Bahrain office and appointed a General Manager to lead the distribution team.
EIIB is pleased to announce that following the commencement of business in April, in an operational period of less then nine months, the Bank has generated a profit before tax of £1.9M driven by revenues of £7.8M. This reflects the progressive build of transaction flow and the effective utilisation of capital to participate in secondary market sukuk transactions.
2006 was spent completing the process of building the Bank’s infrastructure, including personnel, and establishing a presence in the Islamic marketplace in the UK and overseas. The principal emphasis during the year was to ensure that the Treasury and Capital Markets; and Asset Management business teams as well as the middle and back office support functions were in place to support transactions. The Bank has in parallel, focused on building its deal flow and counterparty relationships so as to ensure that as it enters the New Year there is strong momentum across all business lines. Excellent progress has been made in this regard and EIIB have participated in selected primary capital market transactions, while actively trading in the secondary market for quality sukuk issues.
In 2007, the Bank intends to further develop its proprietary trading business while sourcing and securitising assets on behalf of clients. The coming year will see considerable activity in the Asset Management business, with a number of planned product launches to follow on from the Pan-European Islamic Real Estate Fund and the Secured Equity Fund announced in December 2006.
The Chairman, Adnan Yousif, said:
“We can be justifiably satisfied that in 2006 we have substantially delivered on all the product and business milestones we set ourselves at the time of our launch. We have not only put in place the infrastructure needed to support the business growth but we enter the New Year with products that are ready for marketing and a robust deal pipeline that will deliver a sustainable revenue stream for 2007 and beyond. We have a highly motivated team of professionals whose wide range of capabilities positions us to be the ‘Islamic investment bank of choice’ in Europe. The team can feel proud in what they have achieved during the year, effectively pioneering the establishment of a domestic Islamic investment bank in the UK and demonstrating that London can be the gateway to bridging the European and Islamic financial markets. They should all feel great pride in our achievements over the last year and I am sure that they share our excitement for the future.”
About EIIB:
EIIB was incorporated in January 2005 and received its authorisation by the FSA in March 2006. In April, it opened for business, and on 17 May completed its IPO and was admitted to London’s AIM market. In November 2006 it opened a representative office in Bahrain.
Headquartered in London, EIIB’s range of products and services include the following Sharia’a compliant investment banking activities:
- Islamic Treasury and Capital Markets
- Asset Management, including Private Banking
- Structured Trade Finance
- Corporate Finance and Sharia’a Advisory.
EIIB aims to deliver a full choice of alternative investment opportunities, enabling Islamic investors to construct balanced and sophisticated portfolios which can access a full range of asset classes internationally.
EIIB will seek to service a market for Sharia’a compliant investment banking services in Europe, the Middle East and Asia that it believes has been under-exploited by conventional and Islamic banks, and by non-banking institutions. EIIB intends to become a major participant in the market for Islamic securities, treasury and investment products, which is currently experiencing rapid growth.
The founding shareholders of EIIB include Gulf based individuals and institutions, including a number of Islamic banks, as well as individuals and companies based in Europe.
