Saudi Alinma Bank opens first branches

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Saudi-based Alinma Bank on Saturday opened its first branches in the kingdom, more than a year after raising $2.8bn in an initial public offering, the lender said.

The newly opened branches are located in the capital Riyadh, Jeddah and Taif, the bank said, adding that it will have 15 branches open within two weeks.

The lender will provide Islamic-compliant services.

Alinma will be competing with 11 Saudi banks and several foreign banks, including National Bank of Kuwait and France's BNP Paribas.

The bank plans to add another 20 branches before 2011, bank sources said.

The formation of the sharia-compliant lender was ordered by King Abdullah in 2006 at the height of a stock market crash that has destroyed the savings of hundreds of thousands of ordinary Saudis.

Three funds owned by the government of the world's largest oil exporter hold in equal shares 30 percent of Alinma's 15 billion riyal ($4bn) capital. The remainder is held by the public. The bank raised 10.5 billion riyals in an IPO in April 2008.

Alinma has said it would give clients credit cards upon opening an account.

Concern over the global financial crisis has further slowed down credit growth as lenders became increasingly cautious. (Reuters)

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