Gulf Bank of Kuwait

About Gulf Bank

Gulf Bank - Kuwait is a premier bank in Kuwait with a broad offering of consumer banking, wholesale banking, treasury, and financial services. Gulf Bank (GBK) was listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) in 1984. The Bank has large network of 56 branches, with total assets of KD 5,467 million for year ended 31 December 2016.

Gulf Bank is currently ranked ‘A’ by the three leading international credit rating agencies. Prior to 2015, Gulf Bank was rated A+ by Fitch Ratings. In June 2015, the Bank received a rating upgrade from Standard & Poor's to ‘A-‘ from "BBB+". In November 2015, the Bank received a rating upgrade from Moody's to ‘A3’ from "Baa1".

Gulf Bank has been recognized with numerous awards, spread over different sectors of its work, including consumer banking, wholesale banking, products, performance, marketing, human resources, and its corporate social responsibility program. These include awards from respected international publications such as The Asian Banker, International Finance Magazine (IFM); International Banker; Banker Middle East, and Arabian Business Magazine, among others.

Gulf Bank is strongly committed to giving back to Kuwait and society through its corporate social responsibility program. The Bank supports numerous events focusing on youth, education, health and fitness, helping the underprivileged, women's empowerment, as well as promoting Kuwait's heritage and culture. In 2017, Gulf Bank set a Guinness World RecordsTM achievement for its Al Danah account prize of KD One Million which was named the ‘largest prize linked to a bank account’ in the world.

History

Gulf Bank was founded in 1960 and it commenced business operations in a rented flat on Fahad Al-Salem Street in Kuwait City with a total of 50 employees and a capital of 24 million rupees, equivalent to KD 1.8 million (USD 6 million). The Bank received permission from the Kuwait municipality in 1961, to construct its headquarters and was initially granted permission to build up to four floors and an optional basement. Over the years, additional floors were constructed in the headquarters, but care was taken to maintain the original architecture and design of the building whereby maintaining its historic look and keeping to its early roots. The Bank's Headquarters is considered to be one of Kuwait City's landmarks.

The Bank's logo and branch concept design is strongly inspired by Kuwait's seafaring heritage. The decor of the customer area and furnishings have been specially designed in the shape of a dhow and fitted with complementary accessories matching the intrinsic nautical theme. Customers entering the branch experience the warmth and spirit of true Kuwaiti heritage coupled with an efficient and high-quality banking service environment, as well as exceptional customer service.

Latest bank results

Gulf Bank recorded a net profit of KD 43 million for the year ending 2016, an increase of 10% over the previous year. Loan quality continued to improve; gross credit cost (specific provisions plus write-offs) has declined by 16% to KD 72 million compared to 85 million in 2015. Non-performing loans (NPLs) reached KD 93 million or 2.4%, levels that have not been seen since 2007.

The Bank enjoys a strong capital adequacy ratio of 18.5%, which is well above the regulatory requirement of 14%. The capital of the Bank has been further enhanced by our successful issuance of KD 100 million of Tier II capital in May 2016. The assets of the Bank were steady at KD 5,467 million, while total shareholders’ equity was up by 7% to KD 573 million. Customer loans ended the year at KD 3,446 million.

In terms of profitability, the Bank's earnings per share for the year ending 2016 was 15 fils compared to 13 fils for the year ending 2015. The return on average assets was 0.79% compared to 0.72% in 2015 and the return on average equity was 7.73% compared to 7.43% for the previous year.