(Sukuk.net - Bahrain Tribune) Latest ratings reflect bank's financial strength, strong capital and sound asset qualityBahrain and Qatar yesterday launched a new joint venture Islamic insurance company with a paid up capital of $70 million with participation by the entire platform of insurance players in both the countries.

The joint venture, Al Jasir Takaful Insurance Company, under the sponsorship of Qatar and Bahrain Chambers of Commerce and Industry, will see Bahrain and Qatar insurance companies each having a 20 per cent stake while the remaining 60 per cent will be offered to the public in Bahrain and Qatar.
The new insurance company will commence operations soon in Doha and launch its initial public offering later this year both in Qatar and Bahrain. The Islamic insurance company will be licensed and registered in Qatar and listed initially on the Doha Securities Market after the IPO and subsequently on the Bahrain bourse.

Its focus would be primarily on real estate, motor vehicles crossing the proposed Qatari-Bahraini causeway and marine Takaful.

The joint venture agreement was signed yesterday at the Qatar Chamber of Commerce and Industry (QCCI) headquarters by Sheikh Nawaf bin Mohammed bin Jabor Al Thani, QCCI Board member and Chairman of the newly established company, and Sameer Ibrahim Al Wazzan, the Deputy

Chairman. Essam Abdullah Yousef Fakhro, Chairman of Bahrain Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) and his Qatari counterpart, Sheikh Khalifa bin Jassim bin Mohammed Al Thani, were also present.Dr Fakhro said a new

horizon for cooperation has opened up for the business communities of Bahrain and Qatar and these need to be translated into joint projects and partnerships, more with the Qartar-Bahrain causeway connecting the two countries beginning to take shape.

He said the Takaful insurance company was the fruition of efforts by the chambers of commerce of bit countries. Other major joint projects on the anvil were a Bahrain-Qatar bank and a joint holding company.

The company will be headquartered in Doha and a branch in Bahrain was likely to be set up subsequently.

National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) has received a yet another boost as the bank's credit ratings have been upgraded by Capital Intelligence (CI) recently, the bank in a statement said.

NBB's long-term foreign currency rating was upgraded to "A" from "A-", and Short-term Foreign Currency rating to "A1" from "A2". The agency reaffirmed the Bank's Financial Strength rating at "A" with the Support rating remaining at "1"." with the financial strength rating remaining at A. The Outlook is "Stable."

NBB's new ratings are set at the country ceiling for the Kingdom of Bahrain. Both the Long and Short-term ratings for NBB are among the highest for banks in the Gulf region.

As per CI, NBB commands an important position among local Bahraini banks possessing a strong franchise. In CI's opinion, the Bank's balance sheet remains solidly capitalised providing ample scope for sustained business expansion over the foreseeable future.

The Bank's Chief Executive Officer, Abdul Razak A. Hassan Al Qassim said: "The latest ratings upgrade reflect the continued strengthening of the Bank's financial position, its strong capitalisation, stable funding base and sound asset quality." Al Qassim added that the upgrade in our ratings is a clear expression of confidence by the international rating agency in the Kingdom of Bahrain's economy in general and the banking sector in particular.

National Bank of Bahrain is the country's leading provider of commercial and retail banking services with the largest banking network extending to 25 branches and 46 ATMs.







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