Bank Nizwa received the Best Islamic Bank in Oman Award from Islamic Finance News (IFN) during a recently held ceremony in Dubai. The prestigious award was received on behalf of the bank by Salim Rashid Al Maharbi, Chief Financial Officer of Bank Nizwa. More than 400 industry leaders from around the world attended the awards event.

Al Marhabi said, “As Oman’s first dedicated Islamic bank, with fully Shari’a- compliant products and services, Bank Nizwa continues to go from strength to strength and is now the leading Islamic financial institution in Oman. Our customers’ interests are always our main priority and we are employing the latest technologies to ensure they have access to the best service possible. This award recognizes our efforts and spurs us on to achieve even more.”

Bank Nizwa recorded the highest growth rate in the Sultanate’s banking industry with OMR 7.5 million in net profit representing a 98% growth after tax for the period ended 31 December 2018. In addition, the bank’s total assets grew by 25% to reach OMR 873 million compared to OMR 697 million last year, while its total customer deposit portfolio reached OMR 712 million achieving a growth of 35% year-on-year.

The bank has clocked up a huge list of local, regional and international awards over the years, including the ‘Strongest Islamic Retail Bank’ in the Sultanate at the Islamic Retail Banking Awards (IRBA) 2018 for the fourth consecutive year, and ‘Islamic Bank of the Year’ by the leading Corporate Livewire Finance Awards, and ‘Excellence in CSR in Islamic Finance’ award at the regional Corporate Social. Additionally, Bank Nizwa’s CEO, Khalid Al Kayed, was named ‘Islamic Banker of the Year’ at the 7^th Global Islamic Finance Awards 2018.

IFN is a leading international online industry journal. Published weekly, it provides exclusive and comprehensive coverage of the global Islamic financial markets through in-house analysis and expert external contributions; in addition to a daily news service, additional quarterly supplements and a variety of special annual issues.