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Islamic banks in GCC ‘focusing on low-risk retail finance’

DUBAI, September 21, 2021

Islamic banks in GCC countries and South and Southeast Asia are focusing on low-risk retail finance, which will help protect their asset quality amid an uneven economic recovery across these regions, said Moody’s Investors Service in a new report.

"Regulatory forbearance has masked the deterioration in the banks' loan books, and high provisioning costs will continue to weigh on profitability, but their capital and liquidity buffers should comfortably absorb unexpected losses," said Badis Shubailat, Analyst at Moody's. "Consolidation within fragmented Islamic banking markets presents opportunities."

 Key points:

•    Return on assets will remain on average below pre-pandemic levels this year because of low interest rates, a still-subdued operating environment, and high provisioning costs.
•    Strong demand for Islamic finance, which is growing faster than conventional banking, will partially offset these strains.
•    Islamic banks' regulatory capital remains well above minimum requirements. Their liquidity is also strong, reflecting deposit growth as customers cut spending amid economic uncertainty.
•    Central banks in most countries have relaxed reserve requirements and continue to provide banks with liquidity support.
•    The main Islamic banking markets have consolidated in recent years as the sector seeks to improve revenue generation and cut costs. Moody’s  expects more Islamic banks to pursue mergers, particularly smaller players crowded out by large competitors.
•    In the GCC region, Islamic banks have in some cases merged with conventional peers. In Indonesia, the government merged its state-owned Islamic banks in 2020 to help them compete with larger conventional banks. – TradeArabia News Service




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