Aftab Patel, CEO of Al Omaniya Financial Services, was recently listed among the 100 best performing CEOs in the GCC. In an interview to Oommen John P, he talks about the exciting journey with the largest NBFC in Oman since its inception in 1997

Mediaquest has listed you among the 100 best performing CEOs from the listed companies in the GCC. Your comment?
It is indeed heartening to receive this recognition as it validates the management philosophy and strategy. However, it is a most humbling experience as a leader because you are setting higher benchmark for yourself. It’s all the more credible that these awards are in association with INSEAD and further validated by Deloitte.
Al Omaniya has emerged as one of the largest NBFCs in Oman. How has AOFS grown over the past two decades?
Al Omaniya Financial Services continues to be the largest non-banking financial institutions in the country, offering diverse financial solutions across the broad spectrum of economy. The company started its operations in the year 1997 and has consistently grown year after year, building strong fundamentals, creating and utilising every growth opportunity, and in the process rewarding each and every stakeholder. The company started its operations as a retail asset finance institution and along its journey in tandem with economic growth, diversified its product lines. Today it stands as a complete corporate financial solution provider with the unique difference of providing personalised service and tailor-made financial solutions to all its clients.
The company operates in three verticals, retail asset finance providing loans for acquisition of vehicle to salaried and self-employed individuals, providing asset finance, equipment leases, working capital loans, bill discounting, debt factoring, bridge finance, project loans, construction loans for warehouse and factories for large corporate business houses and SMEs in all sectors of the economy and consumer loans for white and brown goods for salaried and self-employed individuals.
The company has a consistent and impressive growth and profitability record.The company continues to retain its number one position in terms of asset size, highest net worth, profitability, EPS, book value, market price, market capitalisation, lowest NPL ratio, highest provision coverage and so on consecutively for many years including the year 2015.
The company has been awarded the Best SME for the year 2001 and also was recognised as one of the top performing companies across all sectors in the mid-cap segment in the years 2010 and 2011. The company has also been conferred with the “Best Enterprise” Award ‘2014 from the prestigious Europe Business Assembly [EBA] in an event held at Oxford, United Kingdom.
Al Omaniya is the only non-banking financial institution in the country to be globally rated and assigned a global scale corporate family credit rating of “Ba3” by Moody’s Investors Service. It has been led by a visionary nine member Board who are eminent personalities and business heads in Oman and an experienced team of senior management with relevant qualifications and experience who have sailed the company to today’s position. Al Omaniya has won several awards and maintained ‘Number 1’ title consistently.
As the CEO, you have been instrumental in the growth of the company. What has been the satisfying moment of your association with the company?
The association started on a piece of paper where I envisioned the DNA of Al Omaniya. The company started with a small portfolio purchased from Bank Muscat and today Al Omaniya stands tall as the largest NBFC in the country. There are many milestones and landmarks and the journey has been very gratifying as it has been productive, thrilling and full of challenges, achievements, fulfillments and enrichment.
We have achieved many milestones and reaped many awards and rewards in the process. Each milestone has been very gratifying as we have been endowed with the visionary and renowned board members and a very competent management team and other technically strong support team. They have been my pillars of support and we have all grown together since the inception of the company and have shared all the highs and lows, challenges and rewards.
What are the strengths of AOFS?
AOFS has a sound and innovative capital structure and novel and valuable integrated business model. We have highly automated and real time systems and processes and offer superior delivery mechanisms and personalised customer service to build customer loyalty and superior brand positioning.
The company continues to manage the liquidity and costs judiciously to ensure sustainable earnings and profitability and to operate in the top end of the market to ensure a high quality loan book. We are also able to reduce our borrowing costs as lenders perceive us as very low risk due to our lowest non-performing loan, highest provisioning coverage, consistent profitability, transparency and innovative products range.
How was the company’s performance in the first quarter of 2016?
The year 2016 is going to be extremely challenging for the economy due to the reduced government spending. It has to do the balancing, the task of rationalising expenses, maintaining the financing for various long term projects. Deceleration in the economic growth has impacted the credit off-take which will further impact the growth of the economy. The company has performed in line with its business plan and consolidation has been our goal. We have been very cautious in writing business. However we have maintained the top line, net profits and quality of our book.
Is Al Omaniya Planning to expand into new product lines?
The company is currently concentrating on increasing and consolidating its current product lines. However, we are also exploring new opportunities to increase our market share in the existing product lines.
We constantly review our products and services and realign our sales to our customer needs and adapt to the changing market dynamics, keeping us relevant all the time , making our business model relevant , stable and sustainable.