INDUSTRY WATCH
ABOUT
Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) was
founded in 1982 as the country’s
first Islamic financial institution and
Sharia’-compliant Bank. Its products
and operations are supervised by a
Sharia’ Board tasked with ensuring
the Bank adheres to Islamic finance
principles.
QIB capital rose to QR 2.36 billion,
while the Bank’s total assets reached QR
123 billion by the end of Sep2015. QIB is
the largest Islamic Bank in Qatar, with
a 41% share of the Islamic sector, based
on assets, and 11% market share of the
banking sector overall.
QIB conducts its domestic business
through 31 branches spread throughout
the country, supported by more than 165
multi-function ATMs. In addition to its
core banking activities, QIB has a stake
in a number of other Qatari Sharia’complaint companies such as: Qinvest,
Al Jazeera Finance, Aqar Real Estate,
Damaan Islamic Insurance Company
(Beema), and Durat Al Doha.
QIB’s ambitions have recently expanded
to the international scene, as evidenced
by its affiliates: QIB –UK in London,
AFH in Lebanon, AFB in Malaysia, and
QIB Sudan.
The Bank’s performance has been
independently rated by international
agencies, and has been rated “A+” by
Fitch,”A” by Capital Intelligence and
”A-” by Standard & Poors.
regulatory requirements, it’s the innovative
approach of system integration of complex
Sharia’ compliant products and project
execution, without any impact on BAU
operations, stands out.
Some of the other operational areas
where we have devised innovative
approach include
• Identifying the right stakeholders
with clear roles & responsibilities,
empowering and building collaborative
relationship.
• Meticulously tracking risks and having
mitigation plans while inculcating a
culture of transparency and fairness.
• “Zero Customisation” policy;
encouraging to adopt the “best-inclass” process offered by the system
• Ensuring strict adherence to approved
budget and reducing the non-fixed
(variable) program budget elements
through strict budget control
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mechanisms
• Scheduling periodic program
governance, project team meetings
and using internal communication
portal as an effective collaboration tool
and ensure on-time reporting to various
stakeholders
What are the key business
driving factors behind the
multiple technology initiatives
which QIB has undertaken in
the recent past?
The main drivers for undertaking multiple
technology initiatives are • Alignment with QIB Business strategy
• Increase competitiveness in the local
and international market
• Enable business continuous growth and
enhanced margins
• Deliver flexible, scalable and agile
business services and products
QIB has been internationally recognized
by a number of bodies as the ‘Best
Islamic Financial Institution in Qatar,
and was also named “Islamic Bank of
the Year 2015 in the Middle East” by The
Banker Magazine International.
• Assist in automated Banking Services
• Enhance IT Controls and Governance
and Technology innovation
• Ensure system’s stability and high
availability
• Solidify the foundations of IT
Infrastructure to sustain business growth
and expansion
There is a general perception
among most CIOs that IT is not
adequately heard in top-level
executive management talks.
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