Mashreqbank to launch Islamic arm

Abu Dhabi: Mashreqbank intends to launch its Islamic retail banking arm, Al Badr Al Islami, within two months, according to a senior official.

"We have acquired the necessary licence for operating an Islamic financial company, and we intend to launch within two months time," Nabeel Waheed, the bank's Treasury and Capital Markets division head told Gulf News yesterday.

"Islamic banking will be one of the key growth areas for us within the coming three to five years," he said.

Oil futures

"We intend to issue Islamic oil futures contracts soon, within the framework of the DGCX, and we are looking forward to being listed as well in the new Dubai Mercantile Exchange (DME)," added Waheed.

"We are already fully licensed at the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), which is a necessary requirement for listing at the DME, as we intend to be a major player in this field," he said.

Regionally, Mashreqbank has been ranked among the top three foreign banks in Qatar and the institution still has bullish plans for the Qatari market, according to Waheed.

"Our operations in Bahrain have shifted from offshore banking with our new branch there, and we intend to launch new funds for Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain soon with a sum of Dh1 billion allocated for the purpose," he said.

Foreign operations

The bank intends to focus its foreign operations in the MENA region, as the area enjoys remarkable economic growth according to Waheed.

He was speaking on the sidelines of the opening ceremony of Mashreq Securities' first VIP trading lounge in Abu Dhabi.

"There are two more lounges that will be launched soon in Dubai as well as Sharjah," Abdullah Al Ghurair, the banks chairman and the head of the banking association told the reporters yesterday.

The new facility hosts a dedicated corporate desk that acts as a single point of contact for all corporate queries.

Commenting on the bank's expected profits for 2006, Al Ghurair explained that it is committed to the Central Bank's regulations.

Meanwhile while Waheed explained that the bank does not invest in the local stock markets, as the preference is for fixed income instruments, while the initial public offerings finance is not beyond regular boundaries.