AMMAN, 23 May 2006 — Britain’s Financial Services Authority (FSA) has given its approval for the Arab Bank to establish Europe Arab Bank (EAB) in London with a capital of 500 million euros, the Arab Bank Chairman and CEO Abdul Hamid Shoman said yesterday.
Shoman said that the EAB would streamline the Arab Bank’s businesses under a new umbrella entity. “The FSA’s licensing will enable the EAB to have a European passport to branch out in all the European Union countries,” he added.
The EAB will oversee the operations of the Arab Bank’s existing branches and subsidiaries, which will now be affiliated with the EAB PLC.
As a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Arab Bank plc, the EAB will have the benefit of being part of the Arab Bank Group and will have branches in Frankfurt, Paris, Rome, Madrid and Vienna in addition to London, Shoman said.
He pointed out that the EAB would focus on trade-related business between Europe and the Middle East and North African (MENA) region as well as on private banking, corporate finance and treasury.
The establishment of the EAB was encouraged by $250 billion worth of annual trade between the MENA region and the European Union, Shoman said.
“This large market gives us the opportunity to prove a niche service to a growing number of European companies and individuals wishing to invest in the countless emerging opportunities in the MENA region,” he added.
In 2005, the Arab Bank Group, which has a global network of 400 branches and subsidiaries in 28 countries, posted a net profit of more than $503 million, recording a rise of almost 54 percent compared to 2004.
