Bank Sohar Approves 4% Cash and 6% Share Dividends at AGM

Muscat, April 01, 2015

Bank Sohar's shareholders attended the Annual General Meeting organised by the Bank at the Crowne Plaza Muscat on Sunday March 29. During the AGM, the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Members of Boards of Directors and the executive management from Bank Sohar briefed shareholders on the annual results of the Bank, and discussed key agenda items.

The AGM agenda covered 12 topics initiating with a comprehensive review of the Board of Directors' Report as presented by Mr. Abdullah Humaid Al Mamary, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Bank Sohar, for the financial year ended December 31, 2014.  Over the course of the AGM, the proposal for the distribution of cash dividends to shareholders at the rate of 4% of the capital (4 baisas per share) and the distribution of share dividend  to the shareholders at the rate of 6% of the capital (6 shares for each 100 shares) was also discussed and approved. 

A briefing on the 2014 Bank Sohar Corporate Governance Report and the report of Sohar Islamic's Sharia Supervisory Board was presented together with the Balance Sheet and Profit and Loss Account of the Auditors Report for the financial year ended December 31, 2014 which was also approved at the meeting.  The AGM also covered discussions and approval on the sitting fees for the Board of Directors meeting and its sub-committees given in the financial year ended in December 31, 2014.  Moreover, the proposed sitting fees and remuneration for 2015 was also specified.

The Shareholders then went on to recommend appointing Ernest & Young as the statutory external Auditor for Bank Sohar and Sohar Islamic, for the financial year ending December 31, 2015. Their rates of remuneration were also subsequently approved.

Mr. Abdullah Humaid Al Mamary, Chairman of the Board expressed his gratitude to all the shareholders for their attendance and participation in the meeting. "I would like to thank all our customers and shareholders for their continuous support and trust. Their steadfast support has helped us tremendously in building Bank Sohar into such an illustrious establishment. I would like to offer my sincere appreciation to my fellow Board Members together with the Bank's Executive Management and Staff for their efforts and contributions towards Bank Sohar's continued success over the years, and most definitely for its commendable performance in 2014."

With each passing year Bank Sohar continues to reflect ever improving financial results, and the year ending December 31, 2014 saw the Bank record a net profit of OMR 29.878 million, translating to an increase of 11.19% when compared to the previous year's net profit of OMR 26.871 million. The operating profit for 2014 was OMR 38.988 million as compared to OMR 31.735 million in 2013 resulting in an increase of 22.85%.

Mr. Rashad Ali Al Musafir, Acting CEO of Bank Sohar, commenting on the stellar performance of the Bank during the year said, "Our commitment has always been to continue on our path towards business excellence and to achieve that in a manner that would be beneficial to all our stakeholders. Over the years, we have paid critical attention to our service delivery, introducing innovative products that enhance our customer's banking experiences, and expand our market share in Oman. We made appreciable progress on all these fronts in 2014 despite facing tough competition from the market having received numerous awards for the same. I would like to thank the members of the Board for their guidance and all my colleagues for their hard work; it is their efforts together with the loyal patronage of our valued customers that has allowed the Bank to achieve such impressive results over the years."

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For more information on Bank Sohar, please visit the official website at www.banksohar.net. You can also find additional information by following the Bank on Facebook at www.facebook.com/excel.banksohar, on Instagram at www.instagram.com/banksoharexcel or join the conversation on Twitter @banksohar_excel.

© Press Release 2015