Emirates NBD seeks expansion into Saudi Arabia

Emirates NBD is seeking to expand in Saudi Arabia by opening additional branches, the latest bank to signal its interest in the Arab world's largest economy, its chief financial officer said on Tuesday.

"We're very keen to open branches there," Sanjay Uppal told Reuters on the sidelines of a technology conference.

"Saudi Arabia is very important because of its GDP and population," he said. Emirates NBD already has a representative office in Riyadh.

Oil-rich Saudi Arabia accounts for roughly half of the Gulf region's gross domestic product. It has been attracting regional and international banks who see business opportunities amid growing infrastructure demand from a rapidly-growing population and also to service family-owned firms in the kingdom.

Emirates NBD is also active in Qatar and has representative offices in India, Iran and Singapore.

Speaking about the banking sector's third-quarter results, Uppal said "certain core activities are stabilizing again."

The bank, which itself is slated to release third quarter results before the end of October, reported a 41-percent drop in second quarter net profit as it took provisions against bad loans. (Reuters)

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