Business | Banking
Noor in venture to open Islamic bank in Maldives
Noor Islamic Bank on Tuesday said it had entered into a joint venture to establish the first Islamic bank in Maldives.
- Staff Report
- Published: 00:03 July 23, 2008
Dubai: Noor Islamic Bank on Tuesday said it had entered into a joint venture to establish the first Islamic bank in Maldives.
The new entity, to be named Noor Maldives Islamic Bank, will be a joint venture between Noor Islamic, the Ministry of Finance and Treasury of Maldives and the Investment Corporation for Development of the Private Sector, an affiliate of Islamic Development Bank.
The agreement was signed in Maldives by Dr Ahmad Al Janahi, deputy group CEO of Noor Islamic, Wasim Ebrahim, Maldives' Minister of Finance and Treasure and Basel Haj-Issa, director of Unit Investment Fund, Islamic Corporation for the Development of the Private Sector.
The agreement marks Noor Islamic's second international expansion initiative, following its establishment of an overseas representative office in Tunisia last month.
The bank's vision is to be the leading global Islamic bank and it aims to establish its presence on three continents over the next five years.
Important phase
Hussain Al Qemzi, CEO of Noor Islamic, said: "This landmark agreement marks an important phase in the development of Noor Islamic Bank, taking its value proposition beyond domestic borders. With its largely Muslim domestic population, Maldives provides attractive growth opportunities for Islamic banking and for Noor.
"We are honoured to have been invited by the Government of the Maldives to partner with them in establishing the island's first Islamic bank, and to embark on our first venture with the ICD, an affiliate of the Islamic Development Bank. By leveraging the strength of each of the partners, I am confident that this move will further pave the way for the development of the country's financial sector."
Noor Islamic will lead the establishment in managing the operations of the new bank under a management contract. Noor Maldives Islamic Bank will initially focus on consumer and corporate banking, as well as business solutions for small and medium enterprises. The bank is expected to be operational by the end of this year and will be headquartered in the capital Malé. The new bank will have an authorised capital of $100 million and a paid up capital of $10 million.
Strong growth
The economy of the Maldives has seen double digit growth over the last two years, fuelled mainly by the tourism sector.
Maldives enjoys the highest GDP per capita of approximately $4,600 among South Asian countries.
The country's banking sector has also been growing gradually and the total liquidity in the banking system accelerated from 12 per cent in 2005 to 21 per cent in 2006.
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