Ramallah/PNN /

 Bank of Palestine (BOP), convened its Assembly General Meeting (AGM) on May 30th, 2024 in Ramallah. The meeting approved the agenda and discussed the impact of the current war and plans to forge ahead out of the current economic slowdown. The AGM mandated the board to negotiate the fees of the auditor and approved the financial and annual report of the Bank.

Commenting on the meeting, Mr. Hashim Shawa - Chairman of Bank of Palestine Group said: “During the last quarter of 2023, the bank as the entire country had to deal with unprecedented challenges to the economy as a result of the war on Gaza. Our first priority was the safety of our employees and the well-being of our community. 

We acted responsibly and invoked our business continuity plans conducting stress tests which enabled us to draw out contingency planning. We continued to serve our customers in Gaza against adversity and managed to provide crucial support to our community in their hour of need. We worked with international partners and will continue to work with strategic partners to help the bank grow locally and expand regionally as part of our long-term strategic plans through onboarding strategic institutional partners in our capital increase plans.

The bank is well positioned to survive the continuing challenges and is well poised to play a central role in economic recovery and reconstruction capturing regional opportunities for business.”

Bank of Palestine regional expansion strategy is a key pillar of the 5-year strategy. The bank in addition to its presence in DIFC Dubai through a representative office is applying for a booking center at Abu Dhabi Global markets enhancing its presence in GCC to serve Palestinian diaspora, regional and international investors.

 Additionally, the bank has received approval from the Egyptian Central Bank in Cairo to open a representative office with an eye of obtaining licensing for a full branch in Egypt. The bank is in the process of applying for opening branch operations in Jordan as well as part of its regional expansion focusing on the levant area. 

The bank has signed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding with Bank of Africa, a leading Pan African Bank in Morocco; with the Bank of Africa investing a stake of 1.2% in Bank of Palestine with a future commitment of Bank of Palestine investing in the shares of the Bank of Africa in an attempt to enhance economic activity between Morocco, Palestine and the African Continent.

Mr. Mahmoud Shawa, CEO of Bank of Palestine said in the context of the 2024 AGM: "We entered the last quarter of 2023 with strong financial performance.

This has enabled us to withstand the shocks created by the war on Gaza. Despite our strong liquidity ratios and financial position, we took higher provisions to mitigate continued uncertainties while bracing for a long period of economic slowdown in the West Bank and certainly in Gaza. 

Our future outlook remains focused on our commitment to grow the economy locally to serve the SME sector, youth, women segments and continue our drive for digitization and efficiency. As the Chairman stated, 2024 will witness serious steps towards regional expansion for our bank targeting Palestinian diaspora, Arab and international investors.”