Capital Bank concluded the year 2021 with notably solid financial performance, reflected in the bank’s preliminary financial statements for the year. The bank reported an impressive 100% increase in net profits after tax, which reached JOD 61 million compared to JOD 30.3 million in 2020. Excluding all non-recurring operations, including the outcome of the Bank Audi acquisition, this translates to a 70% profit growth.

Given these outstanding results, the Bank's Board of Directors has recommended to the General Assembly the distribution of dividends at 15% of the capital.

The preliminary results also reflect a remarkable 57% growth in the group’s assets, which totaled JOD 4.3 billion at the end of last year compared to JOD 2.8 billion at the end of 2020. Net facilities granted to customers reached JOD 2.1 billion in 2021, compared to JOD 1.4 billion the year prior — a healthy growth rate of 49%. Customer deposits also recorded a substantial increase of 65.5% to reach JOD 2.8 billion in 2021, compared to JOD 1.7 billion in 2020.

Meanwhile, the return on shareholders' equity at the end of last year amounted to about 14% of net profits, excluding non-recurring profits. It is worth noting that these preliminary results are subject to the provisions and approval of the Central Bank of Jordan.

“We are proud in Capital Bank for registering such outstanding results and effectively doubling our net profits at the end of last year,” commented Bassem Khalil Al-Salem, Chairman of Capital Bank Group, underscoring that these results reflect the soundness of the bank’s governance strategy and the measurable success of its efforts to expand locally and regionally. “This remarkable performance has further solidified our leading position in the local banking sector,” he added.

Al-Salem also spoke about key achievements made by Capital Bank Group over the course of the year, all of which were conducive to growth in the group’s market share and overall standing. These included the finalization of the group’s acquisition of the assets and liabilities of Bank Audi branches, and the transfer of the latter’s operations in Jordan and Iraq to the group. in addition to the signing of a binding agreement to acquire a 100% stake in Société Générale Bank — Jordan, pending the approval of the Central Bank of Jordan and other regulatory authorities.

Al-Salem also announced that Capital Bank will become the first Jordanian bank to issue tier 1 (AT1) perpetual bonds worth $100 million (approx. JOD 70 million). He also reported that the National Bank of Iraq has obtained the approval of the Saudi Council of Ministers to establish a branch in Saudi Arabia — a first for an Iraqi bank operating in the private sector. This branch, he added, will work to enhance trade relations and mechanisms between Saudi Arabia, Iraq, and Jordan.

In terms of financial performance, the National Bank of Iraq was able to achieve unprecedented growth in 2021, registering a 103% growth in assets that totaled JOD 876 million at the end of the year, compared to JOD 433 million the year before. Total customer deposits also rose by 176% to reach JOD 562 million, compared to JOD 203 million in 2020.

The group’s investment arm, Capital Investments, also managed to achieve an impressive 95% growth in net profits after tax, which totaled JOD 3.8 million. This growth was aided by an increase in the value of its assets under management, which reached 425 million dollars, in addition to a 35% increase in brokerage accounts year-on-year.

“These results demonstrate the effectiveness of our strategy to diversify our sources of revenue, which helped propel the group’s assets past the record-breaking JOD 4 billion mark,” commented Capital Bank CEO, Dawod Al Ghoul. “It also contributed to a significantly larger group shareholders' equity of around JOD 400 million.”

Capital Bank has become recognized as one of the leading banks in the field of digital transformation and that it continues to deliver cutting-edge banking solutions that leverage the latest advancements in the field. The bank will launch in the coming few weeks a flagship integrated digital bank—Neo Bank — which will radically transform the array of traditional financial services provided to individuals and SMEs in Jordan and Iraq.

Al Ghoul emphasized that these achievements registered over the past year have garnered the bank a rating of “B1 with a stable outlook” by Moody's International — one of the highest ratings for a Jordanian bank.