GFH Financial Group, a leading regional financial group with major interests in asset management and real estate, has delivered strong double-digit growth in its income which rose to $332.2, up 53.7% over last year's figure of $216.2 million.

 

Announcing its financial results for the six-month period ended June 30, 2024, GFH said its net profit attributable to shareholders surged to $60.75 million, up 11.2% over last year's figure of $54.62 million mainly due to contributions from the investment banking business, and growth in the Group’s commercial banking subsidiary and treasury and proprietary investment activities. 

 

Earnings per share for the six-month period was US cents 1.70 compared to US cents 1.55 for the first half of 2023, an increase of 9.7%, stated the Bahrain-based company. 

 

Total comprehensive income attributable to shareholders stood at $67.31 million for the first six months of the year compared with $52.28 million in the 2023 period, an increase of 28.75%. T

 

According to GFH, the consolidated net profit for the first six months was $67.90 million compared with $57.19 million in the corresponding period of 2023, an increase of 18.7%. Total expenses for the six-month period were $163.87 million compared with $116.56 million last year, thus registering an increase of 40.6%.

  

Total equity attributable to shareholders was $969.42 million at June 30, 2024 versus $989.54 million at December 31, 2023, down 2.0%. Total assets of the Group were $10.89 billion compared with $11.12 billion at 31 December 2023, down 2.1%. 

 

On the second quarter results, GFH said its net profit attributable to shareholders stood at $33.61 million for the second quarter versus $30.61 million last year, thus posting an increase of 9.8% resulting from continued solid performance and contributions from the Group’s subsidiaries and core investment management activities. 

 

Earnings per share for the second quarter were US cents 0.94 compared with US cents 0.86 in the second quarter of 2023, an increase of 9.3%. Total comprehensive income attributable to shareholders was $ 31.41 million for the second quarter of the year versus $ 27.71 million in the second quarter of 2023, an increase of 13.35%. 

 

Total income was $169.26 million for Q2 compared to $111.16 million last year, up 52.3%. Consolidated net profit for the second quarter was $37.55 million compared with $32.75 million in Q2 2023, an increase of 14.7%. Total expenses for the quarter were $74.69 million compared with $54.08 million in the prior-year period, up 38.1%. 

 

Currently, GFH manages over $21 billion of assets and funds including a global portfolio of investments in logistics, healthcare, education and technology in the MENA region, Europe and North America. 

 

On the solid growth, Chairman Abdulmohsen Rashed Al Rashed said: "For the second quarter of 2024 and first six months of the year the Group continued its growth trajectory. Its market value was also enhanced by the addition of a new strategic shareholder, with Mr. Ahmed bin Saeed Al Qasimi joining the Group’s shareholder base."

 

"In line with our strategy aimed at providing greater value to shareholders, we have also recently appointed BHM Capital as the liquidity provider for GFH shares listed on the Dubai Financial Market and Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange, as well as SICO as a market maker for GFH shares listed on the Bahrain Bourse. Building on this momentum, our focus remains on even further diversifying our international portfolio of assets and creating tangible value for our investors and shareholders in the forthcoming periods," he stated. 

 

CEO Hisham Alrayes said: "We are delighted to report strong results and performance for the second quarter and first half of the year. For the quarter and six-month period, income grew significantly by more than 50% year-on-year, respectively, enabling us to further enhance profitability in line with market forecasts."

 

During the quarter, GFH also grew its global portfolios and investments and executed exits at good prices for shareholders and the Group. 

 

"Our global real estate asset management arm, GFH Partners, successfully closed its US Industrial & Logistics Fund VII with a total transaction value of $300 million, and we completed the sale of the Group’s investment in Charthouse Bahrain and exited from our joint investment with Carlyle in Citrix in just 18 months, he noted. 

 

"Despite market volatility and geopolitical challenges, we remain confident in our ability to effectively execute our strategy, drive value from our assets, and further build our market leadership in the region and globally for the benefit of our investors and shareholders," he added.-TradeArabia News Service