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GFH Financial Group, a Bahrain-based investment bank, reported a 3.3% increase in third-quarter profits, helped by higher global investment and fund revenues, as the company continues to strengthen its wallet.
The bank’s net profit attributable to shareholders for the quarter that ended Sept. 30 jumped to $24.06 million from the same period a year earlier, the company said.
He attributed the rise to “revenues generated by the placement of the group’s global investments and continued improvements in its commercial banking business.”
Investment banking revenue rose 23% to about $29 million in the third quarter, while commercial banking revenue rose about 29% to $22 million.
“Strong performances from each of the Group’s main business lines supported continued progress during the quarter. Greater diversification also continues to play an important role in enabling GFH to deliver strong results despite global market volatility,” Chairman Ghazi Al Hajeri said on Wednesday.
Listed on the Bahrain Stock Exchange, Dubai Financial Market and Boursa Kuwait, GFH manages over $16.35 billion in assets and funds, including a global portfolio of investments in logistics, healthcare, l education and technology in the Mena region, Europe and North America.
Last month, GFH acquired a portfolio of medical clinics in the United States in a transaction valued at $400 million, expanding its real estate portfolio in the world’s largest economy.
The revenue-generating medical clinic portfolio consists of 11 assets with over 92,000 square feet of space spread across California, Texas, Maryland and Louisiana.
In the first nine months of the year, GFH’s net profit increased by 9.8% to $66.24 million, supported by the “increased” placement of transactions in the investment banking sector as well as sales of Infracorp’s Harbor Row unit.
The $145 million Harbor Row is a waterfront project in Bahrain’s Financial Harbor comprising residential units and retail.
Earlier this year, GFH created Infracorp by splitting its infrastructure and real estate assets to focus more on financial assets.
The new subsidiary manages a portfolio of assets worth approximately $3 billion, which includes land in the Gulf, North Africa and South Asia.
In July, Roebuck Asset Management, a UK unit of GFH, and ICG Real Estate formed a joint venture to buy logistics assets in Spain.
The joint venture with ICG, the real estate arm of London-listed Intermediate Capital Group, will target 400 million euros ($401 million) of “index-linked long-income assets” through direct sales opportunities and sale-leaseback or secondary acquisitions over the next 18 months.
Demand for logistics assets such as warehouses continues to rise due to an increase in e-commerce activity following the coronavirus pandemic.
“Currently, we are focusing on investing in the Gulf markets, particularly the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, due to their steady growth and in light of increased government spending on projects. due to increased foreign income and investment,” Hisham Alrayes, managing director of GFH, said on Wednesday.
As of September 30, the group’s total assets stood at $9 billion, up from $8.08 billion at the end of 2021.
Updated: November 10, 2022, 05:43
