Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank warned yesterday that profit growth for the rest of the year would be “subdued” as it posted flat income for the first quarter of 2012 on increased provisioning.

ADIB, the second-largest Islamic lender in the UAE, made a group net profit of 307.3mn dirhams ($ 83.7mn) in the three months to March 31 versus 304.6mn dirhams last year, it said in a statement.

The number was in line with analysts’ average forecast of 306mn dirhams.

Tirad Mahmoud, the bank’s chief executive, warned a continuation of the global financial crisis and eurozone uncertainty, combined with regulatory changes in the UAE, would pose challenges which could dampen its profit for the rest of the year.

“We continue to anticipate limited quality credit opportunities and a resultant subdued growth in profits for the balance of 2012,” he said in the statement.

ADIB booked 186.1mn dirhams of provisions in the first quarter, 16.6% higher compared to the same period last year.

Net customer financing increased 3.1% to 49.6bn dirhams in the first three months of 2012, while customer deposits grew 10.9% to 57.6bn dirhams in the same period.

ADIB’s subsidiaries include brokerage ADIB Securities and Burooj Properties and both were hit by weak equity and real estate markets in the UAE, it added.