Ajman Bank delivered the highest annual profit before tax of AED440 million ($119.79 million) in its history in 2024 with a growth of 213% compared to net loss of AED390 million in 2023. 

 

This record performance is delivered through a total operating income of AED1.5 billion and net operating income of AED736 million.

 

This was revealed at a board meeting presided over by His Highness Sheikh Ammar Bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, Crown Prince of Ajman, Chairman of the Executive Council, and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ajman Bank. The meeting was attended by Sheikh Rashid Bin Humaid Al Nuaimi, Chairman of the Municipality and Planning Department in Ajman and Vice Chairman of the Board of Directors of Ajman Bank.

 

In 2024, Ajman Bank reported the Return on shareholder Equity at 12.9% (up by 2745 bps) and Return on Asset at 1.8% (up by 332 bps). As part of its commitment to sustainable dividend distributions, the Bank’s board of directors proposed to distribute 7.25%, subject to shareholder approval at the upcoming General Assembly meeting.

 

The strong results are supported by a healthy and optimized balance sheet with Total Assets of AED23 billion, customer deposits of AED19 billion and AED3.1 billion of equity. Capital position and asset quality continue to show extremely strong progress from the previous year proven by major improvement of key ratios: NPL ratio improved from 13.8% to 9.9% largely due to successful resolution of 31% of the nonperforming exposure which also positively helped the bank recover 19.6% of specific provisions, ECL coverage ratio doubled from 1.0% to 2.1% as the bank increased its reserves to strengthen its position well above the industry average, overall provision coverage also improved drastically by 22%. The bank continued to diversify its portfolio bringing the risk based real estate concentration down by 7.3%, while increasing exposure to high quality assets in various sectors.

 

HH Sheikh Ammar said: “These record-breaking financial results are a testament to the strength of Ajman Bank’s strategic vision and its commitment to delivering sustainable value for its shareholders. Ajman Bank continues to play a pivotal role in supporting the growth of the UAE’s economy, and its remarkable turnaround underscores our resilience and ability to adapt in an ever-changing financial landscape. I would like to express my deepest gratitude to the Board of Directors, senior management, and all our employees for their dedication and exceptional performance which have been instrumental in driving our success.”

 

Mustafa Al Khalfawi, CEO of Ajman Bank, stated: “Our robust performance in 2024 to enhance our value and positive returns of our shareholders, expand our customer base and invest in our talents where it reflects the success of our transformation strategy, driven by speed, service, and specialization, along with our unwavering commitment to innovation and customer-centric solutions, which helped us maximizing our efficiency and decreasing general and administrative expenses by 5%. By focusing on remediating distressed assets, we have achieved strong recoveries, further strengthening our financial position. This success would not have been possible without the dedication and hard work of our entire team, whose efforts continue to drive our achievements. As we move forward, we remain committed to building long-term value for our shareholders, while reinforcing our position as a key player in the UAE’s Islamic banking sector. Our strategic initiatives will continue to prioritize sustainable growth, driven by advanced financial services that meet the evolving needs of our customers and facing the banking challenges regionally and globally.” - TradeArabia News Service