Emirates NBD, a leading banking group in the UAE, launched its first Asia Pacific branch in Singapore today. 

The group’s international operations include branches in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Kingdom and Jersey (Channel Islands), and representative offices in India and Iran.

Ahmed Humaid Al Tayer, chairman of Emirates NBD, who officiated the launch, said: 'The bank's objective in opening a branch in the Asia Pacific area is to position itself in a convenient hub to cover the world's most dynamic economic region which includes the strong emerging markets of China, India, South East Asia and other East Asian countries.

“Singapore's established reputation as one of the world's leading financial centres and its strategic location within the Asian region makes it a logical choice for Emirates NBD to establish its first Asia Pacific branch in the country'.
 
Emirates NBD Group deputy CEO, Abdul Wahed Al Fahim, said: 'It is the intention of the Singapore branch to leverage the extensive infrastructure we have in UAE and to exploit the overseas offices of Emirates NBD to maximise the business opportunities available to the branch. The UAE is Singapore's second largest trading partner in the Gulf with total bilateral trade of SGD11.6 billion.  Emirates NBD will seek to facilitate trade and investment flows between the Gulf and the Asia Pacific region. “

A focus of the bank’s Singapore branch will be on wealth management, targeting high net worth individuals (HNWI) from the Middle East who would like to base part of their offshore assets in Singapore.  Conversely, the branch will promote Mena (Middle East North Africa) investments to Asian HNWIs who are currently under-weighted in their Mena exposure, he said. –TradeArabia News Service