Philip King of IBQ: “Retail Banking Sector looks healthy; QCB regulations will have positive effects on credit growth in Qatar”

Philip King, Head of Retail Banking at IBQ said that the retail banking sector looks healthy with strong opportunities for expansion. King also sees that the Qatar Central Bank’s regulations will certainly have a very positive impact on the short-term credit growth in Qatar and will protect the sector from “over-heating”. These statements were made at MEED’s Middle East Retail Banking 2011 event held between 3 and 5 October in Dubai. The event saw in attendance scores of industry officials who discussed future trends and shared expert insights.

In a panel session exploring retail banks of the future and strategies to maintain a competitive edge in a crowded market, King spoke about the banking landscape in Qatar in light of the nation’s recent economic ratings and answered significant questions about the challenges of an over-banked market, products shifts in response to customer demands and product differentiation through, for example, m-banking and e-banking in a highly saturated industry.

Philip King said: “The Qatari government is committed to developing the financial services sector in the country. Qatar economic growth shows strong signs of health with high GDP per capita and real GDP growth in double digits. Population increase and influx of expatriates will help leverage the bankable target audience and IBQ is strongly positioned to cater to this growth.”

MEED’s Middle East Retail Banking 2011 conference is a unique annual gathering of leading financial institutions including conventional banks, Islamic banks, finance regulators, credit bureaus, technology services, solution providers and finance consultants. The event provides attendees with the most up-to-date regional market intelligence, statistics and analysis surrounding the Middle East’s retail banking sector in addition to the chance to discuss and focus on the growth of service and product innovation in the Middle East region’s competitive retail banking market. The Middle East Retail Banking 2011 is a comprehensive platform for attendees to network, build business relations and take their retail banking strategies one step further.

King added: “Qatar’s credit card industry is expected to grow by 20 per cent annually driven by low credit losses, strong economic growth and more competition. Currently, the industry is earmarked with stable sources of funds with customer deposits accounting for 53.7 per cent of banks’ funding on average. The differentiation in the marketplace will be led by investments in IT, technology and customer services delivery – three of which rank very highly on IBQ’s banking channels.”

The bank has been actively expanding its retail banking activities since 2006 and today it provides a comprehensive range of banking channels including online banking, SMS banking, Phone Banking, 24 hour Call Centre and a comprehensive ATM network.

IBQ has distinguished itself through delivering premium and customized retail products and services and excellence in customer service. Innovation, flexibility and service delivery have been the driving forces for IBQ and have turned it into the “Bank of Choice” in Qatar today.

IBQ has delivered a number of innovations and retail banking firsts in the marketplace in Qatar including the first premium range of Cash Back credit cards and the first Infinite Visa card for high net worth individuals; the first year-long merchant partner programme for credit cards; the first comprehensive range of Super Savings account products to provide high-yield solutions and free life insurance for customers; the first full secure online shopping features through the IBQ Card Secure service in association with MasterCard Secure and Verified by Visa; and the first comprehensive Ladies Banking service offering custom solutions and benefits.

IBQ’s commitment to customer service and service quality has resulted in the bank receiving numerous awards including Best Customer Service in the Middle East for four consecutive years in 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 from the Banker Middle East Magazine and recently the Best Retail Bank for 2011 in Qatar by Arabian Business Achievements Awards. IBQ’s annual financial results in 2010 have shown that the bank has continued to outperform the Average Market Growth Rate for the sixth year running with an Operating Income of QAR 853 Million and a Net Income of QAR 458 Million.