Exclusive Interview: Rory Tapner, Coutts CEO

Rory Tapner, Coutts CEO, reveals how the UK’s most famous private bank is set on carving out a slice of the region’s rapidly growing wealth.

Commercial Bank Of Qatar Appoints New CEO

The lender has named Abdulla Saleh al-Raisi as its chief executive officer.

UAE Fuel Stations Resume Credit Card Payments

Card payments, suspended in 2007, will resume with a charge of Dhs2 for all fuel purchases made.

Luring Emirati Talent To Finance Remains A Challege

Attracting Emirati talent into the finance sector will be a long haul process.

DFG Sells 30.5% Stake In Malaysia’s Bank Islam

The sale transaction worth $550 million concluded on July 31.

UAE’s Abraaj Group Exits Investment In Ghana’s HFC Bank

The investment firm sold its stake in HFC to Republic Bank, an independent Caribbean bank, for an undisclosed sum.

MENA CEOs Confident About UAE and Saudi Growth

Despite a bullish outlook on sales growth by MENA CEOs, employment levels are expected to remain flat with businesses adopting a cautious approach.

IMF Warns Dubai On Debt, Surging Property Prices

Dubai property prices have soared around 35 per cent from a year ago in June, according to estimates, triggering fears of another bubble.

UAE Online Job Postings Fall 31% Annually – Monster

Healthcare job opportunities in the UAE were up by eight per cent from last year but chemicals industry jobs plunged 14 per cent.

Bahrain’s Investcorp Annual Profits Surge 56%

Investcorp made a net profit of $104.9 million in the 2013 fiscal year ended in June.

StanChart Hires Ex-Morgan Stanley Banker For Middle East Push

Sarmad Lone has joined the British lender as its regional head for global corporates for the MENAP region.

Dunia Finance Posts 91% Profit Increase For H1 2013

Dunia posts Dhs55.6 million profits; Dhs166.4 million revenues

Saudi Local Salaries Decline 10% Due To Inflation

Survey finds that male salary levels fell by SAR 371, while female salaries dropped by SAR 211.

Fee Income Helps Dubai’s Mashreq Post 25% Profit Leap

The profit increase came despite a 20.9 per cent jump in impairments.

Oman’s Bank Nizwa Obtains Investment Banking Licence

The lender, Oman’s first full-fledged Islamic bank, launched operations in January.

Kuwait’s Global Says Completes $1.7bn Restructuring

Under the deal, Global separated its core fee business from other parts of the company.

First Gulf Bank Reports 15% Rise In Q2 Net Profit

The lender is rapidly diversifying its presence, both domestically and internationally.

National Bank Of Abu Dhabi H1 Profit Up 25.6%

The UAE’s largest lender made a net profit of Dhs2.6 billion in the first half of the year, on the back on increased revenues.

Qatari Lender CBQ Posts 5.6% Drop In Q2 Profit

The bank attributed the fall in profit to a provision against a domestic real estate loan.

Kuwait’s NBK Reports 19% Rise In Q2 Profit, Misses Estimates

National Bank of Kuwait posted a net profit of $165.7 million in the second quarter of the year.

Dubai’s Emirates NBD Beats Forecasts As Q2 Profits Surge 50%

The lender made a net profit of Dhs972 million in the three months to June 30.

Dubai Islamic Bank Reshuffles Management, Appoints New CEO

Adnan Chilwan, who was previously deputy CEO at the bank, replaces Abdullah Al Hamli as the new chief executive.

Nasdaq Dubai Appoints Hamed Ali As CEO

Ali has held the role of acting CEO since August 2012 following the departure of previous CEO Jeff Singer.

Egypt Gets $2bn Saudi Payment To Fix Crumbling Finances

The funds from the KIngdom were given in the form of a five-year interest-free deposit at Egypt’s central bank.

Dubai Financial Market Q2 Profit Soars On Higher Trading

The firm made a net profit of Dhs69.5 million in the three months to June 30, compared with Dhs10.2 million in the same period of 2012.

Saudi’s SABIC Q2 Net Profit Up 14%

SABIC’s net income for the three months to June 30 was 6.04 billion Saudi riyals compared with 5.3 billion riyals in the same period last year.

Bank Sohar To Consider Bank Dhofar Merger Offer

Bank Dhofar, the larger of the two lenders, said last week that it had approached Bank Sohar with regards to a merger proposal.

Kingdom Holding Posts Small Q2 Profit Rise

Net profit for the first six months of 2013 was 291.3 million riyals, 4.1 per cent up on the 279.7 million riyals made last year.

Sheikh Mansour Sells 6% Stake In Barclays

The Manchester City owner sold all of his stake in the British bank after helping to rescue the lender during the financial crisis.

UAE Transferred $3bn In Aid To Egypt, Saudi To Follow

Gulf Arab oil producers have promised aid packages worth $12 billion to Egypt since the overthrow of president Mohamed Mursi.