With entrepreneurship in the region witnessing an unprecedented boom, funding options are also on the rise.
ICBC ME posted a pre-tax profit of $36 million in the first half of the year, up 157 per cent from H1 2011.
Fees from Qatar Investment Authority paid to the British bank are being scrutinised by the UK’s Serious Fraud Office.
Mohamed Mursi confirms there will be no new taxes and will look to investment to fix the country’s economy.
Kuwaiti investment firm NIG is now seeking approval for its lawsuit against Carlyle to be heard in Kuwait rather than the US.
Jordan’s largest lender has elected Sabih al-Masri to head the bank after the sudden resignation of Abdel Hamid Shoman.
Saudi Arabia’s banks post bumper profit growth and lead the region’s banking recovery.
The National Bank of Abu Dhabi comes highest in the region for world’s safest banks; Europe take top five spots.
BoP will launch its Dubai office in 2013 to serve 200,000 Palestinians.
The region’s banks witnessed a moderate recovery last year with continued overall gains expected for 2012.
Banks are slowly recovering from the 2008 fall out but the impact of a major government spending spree is yet to be fully realised.
Higher capitalisation and new profits in the UAE are threatened by the Eurozone and weak global growth.
Strong government regulation and hefty public spending have buoyed the Kingdom’s banking sector.
Massive public spending and impressive GDP growth saw a bumper year for Qatar’s banking sector.
Increased consumer lending and new banks will put the country on a solid footing this year.
Bahrain faces sluggish growth and a rise in non-performing loans due to the fallout from political unrest.
Higher GCC banking profitability was driven by improvement in margins, faster asset expansion and expanding fee income in 2011.
The top 50 banks’ consolidated assets grew by a higher 9.1 per cent in 2011 to $1.2 trillion, compared to 6.8 per cent in 2010 and four per cent in 2009.
The country made a formal loan request to the International Monetary Fund during a visit to Cairo by IMF chief Christine Lagarde.
CITIC, partly owned by China’s sovereign wealth fund, did not give financial details of the investment.
Fears of a Euro lending shortage appear overblown as local banks grow their loan books.
The false records cases could be easier to prove than money-laundering.
Banks in the region are benefiting from high profit margins and government support, says new report.
Abdel Shoman, chairman of Jordan-based Arab Bank, reportedly resigned after a disagreement with key shareholders.
The UAE Central Bank has told lenders to reschedule citizens’ loans by more than 48 months.
Qatar inflation rose to its highest level so far this year in July, driven by furniture, textiles and home appliances.
The Egyptian investment bank posted a net profit of $4.4 million as revenues from its brokerage operations declined.
A Malaysia-based association of Islamic scholars is planning to develop a global code of ethics to improve standards in the industry.
Central Bank orders regional banks to meet liquidity requirements from January 2013, in preparation for Basel.
Standard Chartered may have settled its Iran regulatory dispute for $340 million but investors remain wary.