Qatar – Mubasher: Qatar First Bank (QFB) said it intends to float its share on Doha bourse as early as the first quarter of 2016.

"We hope by the end of the first quarter of next year that we will be ready to list. Things are on the right track," Chairman Abdullah Al-Marri told journalists at a press conference in Doha.

The listing of new companies on the Qatar Stock Exchange is of a special significance, given that the pace of floating shares on the market is very slow compared to regional peers. Qatar exchange saw only one stock listing in more than five years, which was of Mesaieed Petrochemical Holding (MPHC) in early 2014.

QFB achieved QAR 679.9 million gross income in 2014, up 6% year-on-year, while net income increased by 13% to QAR 158.3 million.