Statement of the chairman

Ci-NET has also exerted relentless and exceptional efforts to provide continuous and uninterrupted services to subscribers under the pandemic circumstances. Meanwhile, the Company has assumed its leading role in the market by providing its services in digital form, where the distinguished corporate governance framework adopted by Ci-Net has supported the continuity of its business within a sound supervisory framework. The Company has also focused on instilling a culture of governance in all its practices and stressed the application of the principles of governance as represented in accountability, transparency and independence, which helped us to ensure compliance with all the requirements of government and regulatory entities in Kuwait.

The risk management system and the prudent application of information security and safety standards allowed us to maintain the high quality of our databases, through the application of the highest security standards and the Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery Plan approved by the Board of Directors, which has greatly contributed to the preservation of the Company's assets. In order to ensure continued growth of the company's assets and resources, some precautionary measures have been taken to protect Ci-Net against any additional financial fluctuations that may arise from the uncertainty caused by the continuing epidemic.

These changes and developments witnessed in 2020 have led to rapid changes in customer behaviour, the most important of which was the launch of direct platforms and replacing them with digital platforms for the services and achieve customers' desires and aspirations remotely. Such process required careful research, creative thinking and continuous hard work to achieve a qualitative leap in terms of quality services provided in a digital form. We deemed it necessary to apply new experiments to develop digital and automated technologies with a view to achieving added value for the Company's products and services, keeping an eye on the continuous efficiency of business and putting innovation at the top of our priorities while dealing with the crisis. This allowed us to explore new sources of revenues, which affected the annual profits for the fiscal year 2019/2020 positively. Hence, we developed a conviction that banking and credit work is more than just a graphical or financial brokerage, we need to constantly think about what we can offer on a scale that goes beyond the goal of continuous profit making, to ensure our contribution to protecting our subscribers, the interests of our shareholders and our community as a whole. Therefore, we aim to achieve tangible impact and provide long-term added value to all related parties, through our focus on sustainability in providing services as established by the provisions of Law No. (09/2019) on the regulation of credit information exchange and its Executive Regulations.

During the fiscal year 2019/2020, Ci-Net achieved net profits amounted to KD 977,069 (Nine hundred seventy-seven thousand sixty-nine Kuwaiti Dinars), after deduction of zakat and Kuwait Foundation for Academic Progress allocations. Total volume of revenues during the fiscal year ending on 30/09/2020 amounted to KD 2,705,433 (Two million seven hundred five thousand four hundred and thirty-three Kuwaiti Dinars). Consequently, Credit Information Network Company has enhanced shareholders' equity to amount to KD 14,459,817 (Fourteen million four hundred and fifty-nine thousand eight hundred and seventeen Kuwaiti Dinars).

Further to the above, the Board of Directors recommended to the Ordinary General Assembly to distribute cash dividends of 10% of the paid-up capital of the Company, in a total amount of KD 228,000 (Two hundred and twenty eight thousand Kuwaiti Dinars) to the shareholders registered in the Company’s records at the Kuwait Clearing Company on the date of the shareholders’ Ordinary General Assembly meeting, after obtaining the approval of the Ordinary General Assembly and the relevant competent authorities. The Board of Directors also proposed granting a reward to the members of the Board of Directors for their efforts during the fiscal year ending on 30/9/2020 at a rate of 5.02% of the profits, after deduction of zakat and Kuwait Foundation for Academic Progress allocations, with a total amount of KD 49,000 (Forty-nine thousand Kuwaiti dinars), after obtaining the approval of the Ordinary General Assembly and the relevant competent authorities.

Such aforementioned results clearly confirm the strength of the essential elements that enhance Ci-Net performance and the quality of its business, in addition to being a solid foundation upon which the growth plans for the next year are based. In order for us to be able to continue reaping the fruits of our achievements, the most important of its essential elements is the contribution of our skilled and competent employees who are the main engine for achieving that growth. We are, therefore, always keen to enhance the efficiency of our team and we shall continue to invest in providing them with the necessary training opportunities and contribute to their development in a way that enables them to keep up excelling and succeeding in their field of work, hence achieving the Company’s desired objectives.

Coronavirus has also strengthened the trends of providing digital services, which represented a great challenge to the majority of banks, companies and financial institutions. However, that matter was different for us. Thanks to Allah Almighty and to the Company's insightful vision, we succeeded in providing our services to all customers, despite these circumstances, electronically in user-friendly ways. This is exactly the goal we aspire to achieve; namely to focus and accelerate the implementation of Ci-Net Digital Transformation Strategic Plan, which has become the main pillar in the strategy of diversification and expansion in the provision of credit reporting and credit rating services. At the outset of the year 2020, Ci-Net adopted a new strategic direction that will pave the road towards enhancing the efficiency of its work and its performance levels, thus achieving the desired results in accordance with the directives of the Central Bank of Kuwait. In cooperation and coordination with major companies and specialized advisory bodies, our Board of Directors has prepared and designed a clear and specific strategic transformation plan that aims at facing the challenges and opportunities the future holds and benefitting from the technical development witnessed in the banking and financial field, with a view to developing the Company’s business model over the medium term (3 - 5) years. The strategy also addresses the new services action plan that shall be proposed within the framework of implementing that strategy with the aim of enabling the Credit Information Network Company to provide better services to individuals and institutions operating in the State of Kuwait, in addition to increasing the capabilities of Ci-Net to be qualified to perform its business that focuses on providing value-added services to the financial and banking sector in Kuwait. The Company’s objective is to contribute to enhancing the credit system with a high degree of commitment, through using modern technological tools in an innovative manner, stemming from its full belief that digital technologies have become an essential part of the strategy of all companies operating in banking and financial sectors, as they all fully adopt digital aspects in their business and services, which helped the Company to continue providing its services to subscribers and customers electronically.

Ci-Net’s commitment to support the financial and credit services industry in the State of Kuwait is at the heart of its directions as the leading and only corporation in the field of providing credit information, credit reporting and credit rating in the State of Kuwait. The Company shall also continue to provide strategic services that rely on long-term planning, placing the needs of the banking and financial industry at the top of its priorities and plans. In light of the Company's efforts to meet the requirements of that industry, Ci-Net shall soon resume its focus on enhancing the efficiency of its services, thus enhancing its leading position as a center for credit services. Therefore, we believe that the year 2020 was a starting point towards implementing the ambitious strategic directions over the next five years, achieving more growth and development in 2021 and reaching positive results that meet the ambition of our customers and shareholders and also contribute to improving business environment index in the State of Kuwait.

In conclusion, I would like to extend my sincere thanks and appreciation to His Excellency the Governor, Deputy Governor and officials in the Central Bank of Kuwait for their continuous support and good guidance, as well as to Ci-Net’s members of the Board of Directors, the Executive Management and all the employees for their exceptional efforts and dedication to work. We also greatly value the generous support from our honorable shareholders and subscribers.