GFH profit rises 29.5% to $54.62 million in H1

TDT | Manama         

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

GFH Financial Group yesterday announced its financial results for the second quarter and first six months of the year ended 30 June 2023.

The Group reported net profit attributable to shareholders of $30.61 million for the second quarter of the year up 32.74.% compared with $23.06 million for the second quarter of 2022 reflecting continued steady growth and progress.

Major contributions included income generated from the placement of the Group’s global and regional investments, commercial banking business and treasury activities. Earnings per share for the second quarter was US cents 0.86 compared to US cents 0.66 for the comparative quarter of 2022.

Total income for the second quarter of 2023 was $86.83 million compared to $56.11 million for the second quarter of 2022, a rise of 54.7%. Consolidated net profit for the second quarter was $32.75 million compared with $26.03 million in the second quarter of 2022, an increase of 25.8%.

Total expenses for the second quarter were $54.08 million compared to $30.08m in the comparative quarter of 2022, an increase of 79.76%.

H1 results

Net profit attributable to shareholders increased by 29.5% to $54.62 million for the first half of 2023 compared with $42.38 million in the first six months of 2022 in line with growth in contributions from all business lines.

Earnings per share for the period was US cents 1.55 compared to US cents 1.21 for the first six months of 2022. Total income3 was $173.77 million versus $122.13-m for the 2022 period, an increase of 42.3%.

Consolidated net profit for the six-month period increased by 26.0% to $57.19 million compared with $45.38 million in the first six months of 2022. Total expenses for the period were $116.58m up 51.88% from $76.76 million for the first six months of 2022.

Total equity attributable to shareholders was $973.58 million at 30 June 2023 down 2.3% from $996.60  million at 31 December 2022. The decrease was the result of dividends paid for the previous year along with fair value changes and changes in treasury shares.

Total assets of the Group increased by 5.9% reaching $10.34 billion at 30 June 2023 compared with $9.76 billion at 31 December 2022. Ghazi Al Hajeri, Chairman, GFH Financial Group, said, "We’re pleased to report another quarter of solid growth in income and profitability and good results for the first half of 2023 with continued stable growth across the Group’s three business lines.

The Group’s results and resilience are supported by a sharp thematic focus and concentration in attractive and defensive sectors and markets, where we will continue to build our presence. We’re also proud of the growing market confidence in GFH, our strategy and our progress, as recognised by Fitch during the second quarter, with the ratings agency reaffirming the Group’s ratings and stable outlook.

Building on our positive momentum, we will continue to make strides across the business with the aim of further diversifying our operations, growing our revenues and building our portfolio of income-generating assets in key markets and across our core focus areas.

As we do so, we remain committed to further strengthening our performance and returns for our shareholders." Hisham Alrayes, CEO and Board Member, GFH Financial Group, added: "The second quarter of the year saw GFH’s investments continue to deliver enhanced returns and value for the Group, our shareholders and investors.

We are pleased with the strong growth in both income generation and profitability as we execute our strategy and take decisive steps towards further growth across our key business lines - investment management, commercial banking and treasury and proprietary investments.

During the quarter, we were successful in placing more than $328.4 million of investments relating to our regional healthcare platform Healian and other funds we have launched, which build on our experience in the healthcare and logistics sectors as well as in the US markets.

Despite market volatility, our treasury activities also performed well during the quarter and contributed to our results, as did our commercial banking subsidiary Khaleeji Bank. We aim to build on these core areas and are particularly focused at present on accelerating the expansion of the Group’s MEA and GCC-based regional investment platforms.

This includes those in high-growth, defensive sectors such as healthcare and life sciences, education and logistics – which will allow us to capitalise on long-term structural growth tailwinds in the region and our strong track record and expertise gained through decades of investing in global markets.

I am confident that GFH is well-positioned to continue its success throughout the remainder of the year and beyond. We have a strong team in place, a clear strategy and a focus on delivering value to our stakeholders."