#Banking

UAE Central Bank mulls emiratisation of some banking and insurance roles

The board also endorsed the criteria that govern banks’ loan exposure to the real estate sector

UAE: Over 60% of clients set to approach their banks for new services

A recent report advices banks to quickly redesign their respective diversification strategies to remain relevant in the future

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank

Abu Dhabi’s biggest Islamic bank weighs merger deals outside UAE

The lender reported third-quarter net income fell 7.7 per cent from a year ago to Dhs492.9m

Expo 2020 Dubai Emirates NBD

Emirates NBD offers employees one week paid leave to volunteer for Expo 2020 Dubai

The Dubai-headquartered bank is the Official Premier Partner of Expo 2020 Dubai

The transition from legacy to cloud within financial services

The increasing use of online banking services and the rise of cloud-based challenger banks are here to stay

Slack

Entrust acquires Paris-based card issuance firm Antelop Solutions

With this acquisition, Entrust can help banks and financial institutions worldwide create seamless payment experiences for their customers

Capital Bank to deploy humanoid robot ‘Pepper’ for retail banking in Jordan

Capital Bank is the first bank in Jordan to deploy the humanoid robot – Pepper across its branches, supported by Proven Solution robotic management system

UAE Central Bank

UAE Central Bank foreign assets reach Dhs392.4bn by end of Q1 2021

The central bank’s foreign assets increased 0.4 per cent year-on-year

Dubai Islamic Bank Nasdaq Dubai sukuk

Dubai Islamic Bank lists $500m sukuk on Nasdaq Dubai

DIB is the leading UAE-based sukuk issuer by value on Nasdaq Dubai with a total value of $6.3bn listed on the exchange

Sharjah Islamic Bank

Sharjah Islamic Bank operating profits up 27% in Q1 2021

Net profit for the three months ended March 31, 2021, amounted to Dhs164.2m, compared to Dhs153.7m for the corresponding period last year

Easa Saleh Al Gurg tenants in UAE can pay rent through direct debit

ESAG partners with National Bank of Fujairah to offer digital payment system

Scoring a goal: Following the AlUla Declaration, how will Qatar’s growth plans fare?

Normalisation of ties with the GCC, the upcoming FIFA World Cup and economic reforms are painting a positive picture for the gas-rich nation

UAE money laundering prosecution office

UAE gross bank assets at Dhs3.172 trillion at the end of January

Gross credit in the banking system grew from Dhs1.779 trillion by the end of December 2020 to Dhs1.779.2 trillion in January 2021

UAE Central Bank

Overall liquidity in UAE banking system back to pre-Covid levels – Central Bank

The Central Bank of the UAE projects the country’s real GDP to increase by 2.5 per cent in 2021

NCB, Samba shareholders approve merger to create Saudi National Bank, kingdom’s biggest lender

Operations under the new name and structure are planned to start on April 1, 2021

First Abu Dhabi Bank

First Abu Dhabi Bank approves Dhs8.08bn cash dividends for 2020

The bank recorded a a full year 2020 net profit of Dhs10.6bn

Different Arab money

Revealed: Impact of Covid-19 on GCC retail banks revenues

BCG says earnings could shrink by -2.1% annually between 2019 and 2024

National Bank of Fujairah posts net loss of Dhs475m for 2020

The decline was attributed to a substantial increase in impairment provisions and lower operating profit

Emirates NBD

Dubai’s Emirates NBD reports a 52% slide in net profit for 2020

Total income of Dhs23.2bn improved 4 per cent year-on-year

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank

Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank launches one-year healthcare equities note for investors

The structured note which matures in 12 months provides 95 per cent capital protection

Citi UAE expects to triple assets under management to $15bn by 2025

Bank plans to quadruple wealth clients in five years

FIrst-abu-dhabi-bank-atms

UAE’s First Abu Dhabi Bank issues five-year $500m sukuk

It attracted a total orderbook of around $1.5bn which represents a three times over-subscription rate

From left, Jayafar Moidu, founder and CEO of JMR Infotech and Hisham Al Gurg, CEO of SEED Group and the Private Office of Sheikh Saeed Bin Ahmed Al Maktoum

JMR Infotech signs JV with UAE’s Seed Group to enhance digital transformation within the financial sector

JMR’s Genie de Banca digital platform will enable banks and financial institutions to automate and digitise their lending departments, develop new revenue channels, and present their customers with new products and services

Global bank job cuts reach five-year high

The total number of positions that have been eliminated has reached 85,540 globally

Natixis replaces Saudi Arabian CEO after six months in the role

International banks have been expanding in Saudi as the country embarks on a plan to diversify its economy beyond oil

Banking Tech

Here’s how regional banks can create a loyal customer base

Lenders should leverage the use of technology to understand customers’ needs and create a personalised journey for them, says IT firm Comarch

Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank ADCB

UAE’s ADCB posts Q3 2020 net profit of Dhs1.3bn; down 3% y-on-y

It reported a nine-month net profit from January-September 2020 of Dhs2.802bn, down 33 per cent compared to Dhs4.196bn in the corresponding period last year

UAE top 10 banks see profits drop by 38.9% in H1 2020: KPMG

Non-performing loan ratio increases from 3.8% in December 2019 to 4.1% in June 2020

Oman’s top banks see 34.2% decline in profits: KPMG

Increase in non-performing loans squeezed banks’ profits in the GCC country

HSBC’s role in the US lawsuit against Huawei called into question

Lawyers for Huawei argue HSBC improperly aided the US to indict CFO Meng Wanzhou