MANAMA, 29 October 2006 — Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) said yesterday that it has granted a license to Swiss EFG Bank to establish a representative office in Bahrain.
EFG Bank is a wholly owned subsidiary of EFG International, a global private banking group headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland. The group is a publicly listed on the SWX Swiss Exchange and manages assets in excess of $37 billion.
As EFG International’s principal operating subsidiary, EFG Bank is present in 40 locations in 26 countries.
The bank’s Bahrain office will provide wealth management solutions to their clients, both institutional and individual, in the region.
It will be the bank’s second Gulf office, as they began operations in their operations in Dubai in 2005.
“The CBB welcomes EFG Bank to Bahrain’s well-diversified financial services industry,” said director, Licensing & Policy, at the CBB, Ahmed Abdul Aziz Al-Bassam.
EFG International Chief Executive Officer Lawrence Howell said receiving the license would enable the bank to expand its business in the region.
EFG Bank for the Middle East’s Chief Executive Officer Bassam Salem said that his bank was aiming to be one of the region’s leading financial services providers.
“We’re expanding our network across the Gulf region by developing time honored relationships with clients, leveraging our global network and differentiated product range,” he said.
“An upsurge in liquidity and increase in wealth levels in recent years is providing a new growth momentum for private banking services in the region”.
He added that Bahrain is home to a growing community of wealth managers due to the country’s strategic location and close proximity to the region’s wealth hubs.