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Kuwait - KAMCO Investment Company K.S.C (Public) held its annual general assembly meeting (AGM) and its annual Shafafiyah Investor's Forum at the Chairman's Club in KIPCOTower on 7th April 2015.
General Assembly
During the general assembly meeting, KAMCO's board members presented the company's financial earnings report for the year ended December 31, 2014 and agreed to a 5% cash dividends (5 fils per share) distribution to registered shareholders.
Shafafiyah forum
KAMCO Investment Company held its annual Shafafiyah forum which served as a platform for the company's executive management to present the main events in2014 as well as its outlook for 2015 to shareholders, partners, as well as institutional investors. This forum represents our high commitment in international standards in terms of transparency and corporate governance.
Financial results
Entisar Al Suwaidi, KAMCO's Vice Chairman, said, "Despite the various challenges that influenced the local and global economies, specifically in Q4, which led to the drop in net profits for 2014, the Company managed to maintain its operational profitability achieved in 2013.The financial results for the year ended December 2014 recorded a net profit of KD 1.96 million (Earnings per Share of 8.2 fils) compared to a net profit of KD 3 million (Earnings per Share of 12.6 fils) in 2013."
Continuous restructuring and operational focus
Mr Faisal Sarkhou, CEO of KAMCO, said, "In 2014, we continued restructuring our balance sheets by exiting from non-core investments and reducing debt significantly by 17% compared to the financial yearin2013, and by 14% (CAGR) since 2007. In parallel, we have maintained operational growth, while strengtheningour leadership position as an asset manager and an investment bank. The company's AMIB profit increased by 9%. There was also significant development in executing the Company's strategic plans in terms of launching innovative investment products and services."
By the end of 2014, the total volume of our managed assets climbed to a new peak of KD 3.5 billion (USD 12.2 billion) compared to KD 2.9 billion (USD 10.1 billion) at the end of 2013, recording a growth of 23%. There was an increase of 12% in new assets and 11% in existing assets under management. This has made KAMCO one of the largest privately held investment companies in the region in terms of AUM.
Sarkhou added, "For our investment portfolios, carful exiting wasour main approach.We did well to shield our investments and client investments from the severe Q4 related corrections in equity markets. Moreover, we were able to successfully book profits earlier in the year and raise cash to protect the invested capital."
Innovative investment funds
The Company's managed funds operational growth continued to be very active with the offering initiation of KAMCO Real Estate Yield Fund (KREYF), which focuses on building an investment portfolio in income yielding real estate assets that in turn createssolid returns to the fund investors. The fund operates with a monthly subscription plan and has Burgan Bank and Gulf Bank as its distribution agents. The fund executed a number of initial investments and closed the first 10 months with profit. Another new fund at KAMCO that obtained approval from CMA for was the KAMCO MENA Fixed Income Fund (KMPFIF). This fund offers relatively higher returns as compared to returns of the bank short term and has Burgan Bank as its distribution agent. Meanwhile, KAMCO GCC Opportunistic Fund, which invests in shares of companies listed in the stock exchanges of GCC countries, outperformed its benchmark and was up over 22% in 2014. The fund has returned 51.6% since its inception in April 2013 up to date.
Successful track records
KAMCO'sinvestment banking services were affected by the weak business environment and falling oil prices which negatively affected regional bourses,in turn negatively impacting the sourcing and execution of transactions in Kuwait. However, the Company'sinvestment banking services continued to engage the advisory space in the financial, educational, healthcare, industrial and Oil & Gas sectors. Throughout the years, the Companyachieved 82 successful transactions with an underlying of USD 12 billion as of December 2014 (for more than 10 years).
It is worth noting KAMCO's roleas a financial advisor to Burgan Bank's capital increase. The Companyalso advised one of the leading entities in Kuwait in successfully completing its corporate and debt restructuring of USD 120 million. Along withexpected economic and political stability and with more government spending expected on infrastructural development and subsequent increase in transactions across different sectors and corporate debt issuances in Kuwait, there is potential for growth in demand for investment banking in the coming period, especially when these plans are successful in correctly involving the private sector.
Wealth in workforce
KAMCO's human resources team continued to deliver an integrated approach to resourcing, performance,talent management and leadership.The Company believes that its people and teams are its most important assets. KAMCOfurther developed itsperformance management approach and incentive schemes which are relevant to employees' needs and are increasingly in line with the latest international best practices.
Compliance- a key contributor to success
KAMCO'scompliance andrisk management team worked diligently to ensure compliance to the new regulations by following up with the authorities to expedite the process and meet the necessary standards which reflectedon the positive performance of the Company. Owing to KAMCO'scommitment to regulatory compliance, the Company became one of the first licensed companies and its existing and newfunds were among the first to obtain approvals and licenses from the CMA in Kuwait.
-Ends-
About KAMCO
KAMCO Investment Company KSC (Public) is a premier investment company based in Kuwait that is regulated by the Kuwait Capital Markets Authority and Central Bank of Kuwait with one of the largest privately managed AUMs in the region. Established in 1998 and listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange (KSE) in 2003, KAMCO is a subsidiary of United Gulf Bank (UGB) and the asset management and investment banking arm of Kuwait Projects Holding Company (KIPCO). It has become a leading regional company within its sector offering innovative products and services for its clients, holding over USD 12 billion of client AUM and over 82 of successfully completed investment banking transactions worth over USD 12 billion over the years and as of 31 December 2014.
After many years of conducting business in Kuwait's dynamic investment industry, KAMCO has successfully established a robust reputation for solidity, characterized by its prudent, conservative investment philosophy and spirit of transparency which has consistently commanded the goodwill of a wide patron-base.
The Company will further aggressively build upon its core competencies to offer MENA-wide investment management consultancy and services, backed by its proven track-record in stringent risk mitigation, investment product innovation, and a cautious investment approach towards local, regional and international capital markets.
© Press Release 2015
