Bahrain Islamic Bank swings to Q3 loss on provisions

MANAMA Oct 21 (Reuters) - Bahrain Islamic Bank BISB.BH, the country's biggest Islamic retail bank by market value, on Wednesday swung to a quarterly loss as it booked higher provisions on bad loans.

The bank said net loss for the three months ended Sept.30 was 1.36 million Bahraini dinars, compared with a net profit 6.26 million in the year-earlier quarter.

The bank said in a statement it had complied with regulators' demands to book higher provisions for bad debts, in particular those related to Saudi groups Saad [SAADG.UL] and Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi & Bros (AHAB).

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(Reporting by Frederik Richter; Editing by John Irish)