DAMMAM, 17 December 2006 — Yousuf Bin Ahmed Kanoo Holding and CIMB Group of Malaysia jointly established recently a company for Islamic investment which will offer Islamic banking products and services to institutional clients.
Licensed by the Central Bank of Bahrain to handle Islamic investment activities, the new company Kanoo-CIMB is scheduled to become fully operational early next month.
With a $20 million capitalization, the Bahrain-based Kanoo-CIMB will focus on the marketing of specialized Shariah-compliant investment products and banking services in the Middle East and North Africa.
“We are glad to launch the first joint venture with an East Asian company,” Badr Kanoo, member of the board of directors of the Kanoo Group said at the inaugural function held in Manama, attended by the Governor of the Central Bank of Bahrain Rasheed Mohammed Al-Maraj.
“We hope that the partnership with CIMB will enable us to offer value-added services to Middle East and North Africa... as it has been making giant leaps in producing Islamic financial products,” Kanoo said.
Kanoo-CIMB is established with the aim of offering Shariah-compliant financial and economic innovations in the Middle East and North African markets, he further said, hinting at plans to enter Saudi market - the largest in the Middle East.
Sayyed Abdul Ghani, executive president of the CIMB Islamic and member of the board of directors of Kanoo-CIMB said “CIMB Group fully understands the significance of operating in Bahrain in concert with the Kanoo Group,” hoping that the occasion would be the beginning of an effort to bridge Middle East and Asian economic tigers.
CIMB is known for its excellent overall performance, incorporating qualitative achievements and strategic initiatives.