Islamic Finance has been growing at twice the rate of conventional financing in the region because of the increasing range of financial instruments and services that are now more readily available.
Enter QInvest, Qatar’s first and largest Islamic investment bank. With authorized capital of $1b and paid up capital of $500m and growing, the bank is making a huge impact in Qatar and in other nations. Also, while the bank currently focuses on doing business in the Middle East, Malaysia, Indonesia, Africa, South Asia and Turkey, the firm is well positioned to look at investment opportunities further afield, in the U.S., Europe and other parts of Asia.
QInvest is organized around four main business lines: investment management, investment banking, pan-regional brokerage, and wealth management. In every aspect, the bank creates worldclass quality and benchmarks itself against both Islamic finance and conventional banking institutions. With a 40% stake in the bank, Qatar Investment Bank (QIB) lends it notable credibility in the marketplace. Other major investors across the Gulf region, including major blue-chip companies, business groups and private institutions, own the remaining 60%.
CEO Shahzad Shahbaz describes the two main strategic investments the bank has made to expand the franchise. “The first of these was our 44% investment in Panmure Gordon, a 130-year old British brokerage firm. Their expertise is important to us as we build the pan-regional brokerage business. We’ve also made a 25% investment in Ambit, one of India’s top investment banking firms. This enables us to give our clients access to the Indian market, in which there is an increasing interest,” he says.
As for the near future, QInvest expects to launch a regional private equity fund that will focus on growth companies in the MENA region. “We also have plans for several other investment initiatives tailored to delivering value and which also reflect interests expressed by our clients,” explains Shahbaz.
