2019 net profit ‘highest in Commercial Bank history’, says GCEO

Commercial Bank Group’s QR2.02bn net profit posted in 2019 is the "highest financial achievement" in its 45-year history, according to chief executive officer Joseph Abraham.

“The last time the bank made QR2bn was in 2012 when oil prices were at $110 per barrel and there was no blockade on the country; despite these factors, the bank has achieved the highest net profit, and this is because the very strong execution of our five-year plan.

“Our five-year plan was based on the underpinning of the 5Cs of Commercial Bank, the first of which is Corporate Earnings Quality, which is the result of the remaining Cs – Client Experience, Creativity & Innovation, Culture, Compliance, and Confidence & Trust,” Abraham said during a recently held media roundtable.

"We also received awards recognising our leadership in digital innovation and in retail banking,” he said, referring to the Asian Banker awards in ‘Digital Innovation Award for Best Remittance Service of the Year 2019’ and the ‘Best Retail Bank in Qatar’ in 2017, 2018, and 2019, as well as the ‘Best Mobile Banking App’ 2019 award by Digital Finance.

Abraham noted that Commercial Bank has recorded 3.5mn transactions since it launched the 60-second online remittances initiative in 2017. Since pioneering the contactless ecosystem in Qatar with the introduction of the ‘Tap N’ Pay’ service in 2018, the initiative is almost touching 3.3mn taps, he noted.

Only recently, Commercial Bank introduced the ‘CB Wallet’, Qatar’s first mobile contactless payment wallet. Last year, Abraham said over 25,000 digital accounts were opened by Commercial Bank customers.

In 2019, Commercial Bank embraced a new era of digitisation by launching ‘CB Fawri’,

‘CB Wallet’, and ‘SWIFT GPI’. It also successfully upgraded its mobile app and widened its digital infrastructure.

“In the past years, we have shown that Commercial Bank is a leader in any of these fields and has actually made many things possible, so we are continuing to remain committed and to support the Qatar economy, as well as the growth and development, and diversification of Qatar,” he said.

Commercial Bank chief financial officer and executive general manager Rehan Khan said, “Year-on-year, we have been working on customer experience, making sure we have the right products that the customer needs and demands. The bank is also focusing very much on non-funding income, which is transaction banking, payments, cash management, and remittances.

“This means our income has been increasing every year, and also we had a very strong focus on cost. We are investing in technology but at the same time that is leading to operational efficiency.”