SICO declares BD2.14m dividend

Manama : The shareholders of Securities & Investment Company (SICO) approved a cash dividend of BD2.142 million for 2016, which represents 5 per cent of the paid-up capital. 

The approval was made during the bank’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) held yesterday at the Diplomat Radisson Blu Hotel, Bahrain.

The Bahrain-based wholesale bank posted a consolidated net profit of BD2.3m for 2016, compared with BD2.8m in the previous year. Total assets under management increased by 19pc to more than US$1 billion, while fee-based income accounted for over 50pc of total revenues. 

BD234 thousand has been transferred to the statutory reserve. Total shareholders’ equity after appropriation of the statutory reserve stood at BD58.1m at the end of 2016, compared with BD58.4m at the end of the previous year.

Commenting, Chairman Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa said, “These achievements reflect the resilient and proactive approach adopted by the bank’s core business lines throughout the year, and illustrate clients’ continued confidence in SICO’s ability to deliver a superior performance in challenging market conditions.”

The Chairman further said that the bank took a strategic decision in 2016 to diversify its product offering with the addition of real estate-related business activities.

Looking ahead, Shaikh Abdulla said that 2017 is likely to be another highly-testing and unpredictable period. 

He, however, stressed that improved stability in oil prices, together with the economic reforms being implemented by regional governments, should have a beneficial future impact on GCC economies.

Chairman welcomed two new members: Khurram Ali Mirza representing the Social Insurance Organisation and Emad Al Saudi representing Bank ABC. He also thanked outgoing directors Mahmoud Al Zewam Al Amari and Yusuf Saleh Khalaf.