Fitch Ratings Affirms QIIB Rating At “A” With a “Stable” Outlook

March 17, 2019

Qatar International Islamic Bank (QIIB) announced that Fitch Ratings has affirmed the bank’s rating at ‘A’ with a ‘stable’ outlook, an attests the bank's strong financial position and its consistency with the high indicators achieved by various economic sectors in Qatar.

Fitch pointed out that QIIB’s rating at this high level is certainly due to various factors, first of which is the high sovereign credit rating of the Qatari economy and the ability of the Qatari government to provide support to banks when needed, as it previously did when the government showed strong commitment towards banks and public sector companies, supported by large sovereign revenues and reserves.

Fitch stressed on the fact that this rating is also due to “the quality of QIIB assets, appropriate capital structure, strong profitability, sound financing, good liquidity, good share of the Islamic banking market and strong presence in the retail sector.”

Commenting on the bank's high rating, QIIB Chief Executive Officer Dr. Abdulbasit Ahmad al-Shaibi said: “The Qatari economy is the strong basis on which we built our solid financial position. We are pleased we were able to capitalize on this strength that have a positive impact on various economic sectors and different growth figures”.

He added: “Global credit rating agencies’ acknowledgement of our strong financial position also indicates the strength of the Qatari banking sector, the soundness of the measures taken by the government and the supervisory authorities, the efficiency of the plans implemented in this sector, the low risks and the ability to cope with various challenges.”