Dubai, UAE – March 2010
Global Banking Corporation [GBCORP] was recently honored with the ‘Best Islamic Bank’ in Bahrain award, from Islamic Finance News in Malaysia, a specialized Islamic finance magazine.
GBCORP, an investment bank incorporated in the Kingdom of Bahrain in 2007, has emerged as a strong and diversified investment bank, addressing the challenges of the adverse market conditions and moving forward with the strategic objective of leveraging on opportunities in new sectors and emerging markets. In recognition of this, GBCORP was named the “Best Islamic Bank in Bahrain” in Islamic Finance news (IFN) Awards Polls - the most transparent, definitive and competitive awards in Islamic finance. The coveted 2009 Poll award from IFN is a reaffirmation of GBCORP’s strategic business initiatives in diversifying its investment portfolio and putting in place strong risk mitigation measures to safeguard its investments against future challenges and address the aspirations of all stakeholders.
Commenting on the award, Mr Abdul Rahman Mohammed Al-Jasmi, Managing Director of GBCORP said: “We take pride in adding this acclaimed award to our portfolio of achievements as a leading investment bank in Bahrain. The fact that the award came as a result of a 2009 poll gives us more leverage as it reflects industry perception and acknowledges our efforts in effecting a positive turnaround amidst the ongoing economic crisis.”
The fifth annual Islamic Finance News poll results came after 2,657 votes were cast over a month-long period. Forty-five categories were contested in the 2009 polls, nine more than the previous year, whereby participants were requested to take only 2009 into consideration when casting their votes. Voters could not vote for themselves or associated organizations and could only vote once. All votes were scrutinized and validated before being recognized.
Ahmed Al Khan, Senior Executive Director, Head of Investment Banking at GBCORP commented: “GBCORP has always been a client centric bank. Since the economic climate deteriorated, we have focused all the more on keeping our investors informed and updated on all investments that they had made through us, ensuring total transparency. Investors have benifited from our consolitated efforts on risk mitigation measures in compliance, operational, financial and strategic risk.”
“Moving away from the volatile markets, and focusing on definitive sectors such as telecom, healthcare, agriculture, energy and infrastructure. We have recently launched Diyafa Holdings, our first foray into the hospitality and business services sector. We have also established a footprint in the telecom sector in India, acquiring an 11% stake in S-Tel, in strategic partnership with Batelco. Historically, these sectors have proven to offer greater resilience.”
“We have thus been able to successfully address the challenges and further build upon our goodwill and credibility, which we consider to be our most valuable asset. This award is a recognition of those efforts, and will further augment our position as a leader in Islamic Finance, in a region where demand for efficient and reliable Shariah-compliant investments is experiencing exponential growth.”
“We are confident that despite the setback that we have experienced in 2009, we will move forward with greater determination, reinforcing our strategic business objectives, underscoring our committed efforts in successfully meeting the aspirations of our investors and stakeholders” concluded Al Khan.
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