Ahli United Bank ranked No. 1 Bank regionally

Press release

Published August 26th, 2013 - 08:58 GMT

Sawsan Abulhassan, Deputy Group CEO, Private Banking and Wealth Management, Ahli United Bank B.S.C

Ahli United Bank B.S.C has been recognized as the region’s top bank for asset management, as revealed by the MENA Asset Managers Survey, inaugurated regionally this year by the London-based FTSE Global Markets magazine.

For its survey, FTSE Global Markets interviewed over 100 Asset Managers across the Middle East and North Africa on a range of issues and product categories key to investors in the region. In total, 64 banks received votes but only those which received at least 15% of the vote in each category qualified for ranking, with AUB emerging the overall frontrunner in the final ranking, ahead of all other leading regional institutions participating in the survey. The full survey results will be published in the forthcoming September issue of the magazine.

Commenting on the results, Sawsan Abulhassan, Deputy Group CEO- Private Banking and Wealth Management, AUB, said: “We are pleased to receive this independent acknowledgement of the strength of our wealth management services, and to be confirmed once again as a premier provider of asset management services across the region. This recognition by a wide and distinguished pool of industry experts and peers is a testament to our consistent record in delivering favourable risk-adjusted returns for our private and institutional investors”.

“Wealth Management at AUB has the distinct advantage of combining the strengths of a regional platform offering broad cross-border reach and capabilities with the trusted care and expertise of local teams at home in 7 markets across the region and the United Kingdom. Our holistic approach to wealth management enables us to provide clients with integrated solutions and innovative strategies to grow and diversify their investment portfolios, while remaining focused on delivering best in class advice and service competently and transparently”.

AUB, which earlier in the year won “Best Bank in Bahrain’ award for the eighth consecutive year from both Global Finance and Euromoney, offers its private banking and wealth management services through 7 subsidiary and associate banks in Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Iraq, Egypt, Libya and the United Kingdom.

Background Information

Ahli United Bank

Ahli United Bank BSC (AUB) is a full fledged commercial and investment banking group providing wealth management, retail, corporate, treasury, offshore and private banking services.

The Group's businesses consist of the operations in Bahrain, a wholly owned subsidiary in the UK and associates in Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Egypt and Iraq. In Kuwait, AUB has an effective holding of 75% in the Bank of Kuwait and The Middle East while in Qatar, AUB has a 40% stake in Ahli Bank QSC. In Oman, AUB has a 35% stake in Ahli Bank SAOG while in Iraq AUB has a 49% stake in the Commercial Bank of Iraq. In Egypt, AUB, its associate banks and other Gulf financial institutions together hold an 89.3% stake in Ahli United Bank SAE. Apart from these banks, AUB has a nominal stake of 75% in KMEFIC, a brokerage, asset management and corporate finance company based in Kuwait with operations around the Arabian Gulf.

Overall, the AUB Group, through its subsidiaries and associates, operates through a network of 93 branch offices and employs over 3,000 people.

AUB’s stated mission is to create an unrivalled ability to meet customer needs, provide fulfillment and development for staff and to deliver outstanding shareholder value. AUB’s strategy is to expand through both organic growth and acquisition in order to act as a ‘multifaceted financial bridge’ between the international financial markets and its Gulf clients. It has sought to establish an operating presence in each of the Pan-GCC countries with a targeted 10% - 20% market share. To this end, AUB continues to develop and invest to increase its ability to acquire new businesses and rapidly integrate them with the bank’s systems. This development has helped accelerate progress in the delivery of financial services and penetration into targeted geographical markets.