The Commercial Bank of Qatar, the country's second-biggest lender, aims to almost double its return on assets in the next few years to be the most profitable bank in Qatar. "We want to have the best ratios in Qatar. Our aim is to be No 1," Deputy Chief Executive Michael Azmi-Loe told Reuters.
In a bid to raise its capital adequacy ratio to 14 percent, from 11.8 percent, by 2010, Commercial Bank is looking at capital market instruments, such as global depository receipts (GDR), hybrid bonds, or other tier-two instruments to fund its growth.
Commercial Bank is listed on the Doha stock exchange where foreign investors can own up to 25 percent of the bank. "The regulatory framework in Qatar is changing, which would allow us to use conventional capital instruments that are common in other places of the world to fund our growth," Loe said.
The lender, which was formed as Qatar's first private commercial bank, saw its assets swell at a compound annual rate of 51 percent between 2003 and 2006, controlling 17 percent of loans and 16 percent of deposits in the oil-rich country.
Now, with total assets of $11.2 billion, equity of $1.6 billion and net income of $277 million in the first nine months, Commercial Bank wants to shift its focus towards quality.