E*TRADE FINANCIAL Corporation (Nasdaq: ETFC), a leading S&P 500 and NASDAQ Financial 100 company, today announced the opening of its flagship office in the Middle East, located at the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). Through its new dedicated Web site, www.uae.etrade.com, the Company will offerHigh Net Worth Individual investors* online access to the US stock markets. The move sets out to provide customers in the region with global access, better value and high-speed transactions. Commissions start from as low as $9.99 per trade, with 2-second execution guarantees on S&P 500 stocks, advanced trading tools and research, and priority customer service through a dedicated team of Relationship Managers.
In a statement released today, Mathias Helleu, Executive Vice President of E*TRADE Financial’s International operation, stated, “Our launch in the UAE marks a very important step in the company’s global expansion plans. The US stock market provides many opportunities to the UAE investor, including superior liquidity, transparency, access to real-time market data and over 5,000 dynamic companies that are shaping their respective industries.”
Assem O. Kabesh, Chief Business Development Officer of the DIFC and Member of the Board of the DIFC Authority, added, “New technology has helped bridged the gap that previously separated investors in the Middle East from stock markets in the West. Today, thanks in part to advances in technology, investors from this part of the world can now fully participate in any market, anywhere, in real time. In that spirit, I’m pleased to welcome E*TRADE FINANCIAL to the growing DIFC family. I am confident that the firm will make a significant contribution to the DIFC’s mission of connecting investors from both East and West.”
E*TRADE FINANCIAL’s development in the Gulf area will be headed up by Mikaal Abdulla, General Manager and Group Vice President, an experienced member of the Company’s senior management team with eight years experience helping the company expand globally. Mr. Abdulla stated, “Due to the rapid growth of Internet penetration in the Middle East and the increasing sophistication of the local investor, we see a great deal of opportunity in the region. Our existing customers in the GCC are amongst the most active traders we have globally. With the incredible growth in the UAE stock market over the past six years we now are experiencing a natural correction. E*TRADE FINANCIAL is seeing many customers move investments into the US stock market that has been performing well. Furthermore, the US market is a means to diversify investments between the DFM and the NYSE & Nasdaq.”
Mr. Abdulla went on to say, “We believe that E*TRADE FINANCIAL’s twenty years of innovation in online investing and global scale with more than four million accounts executing more than 35,000,000 trades last year, will bring real product and cost advantages to the UAE investor.”
* Individual clients need to meet the eligibility criteria as set in “The DFSA Rulebook”.
E*TRADE FINANCIAL
The E*TRADE FINANCIAL family of companies provides financial services including trading, investing, banking and lending for retail and institutional customers. Securities products and services are offered in the USA by E*TRADE Securities LLC (Member NASD/SIPC). Bank and lending products and services are offered in the USA by E*TRADE Bank, a Federal savings bank, Member FDIC, or its subsidiaries. Banking accounts are FDCI insured up to 100,000 US dollars. E*TRADE Securities and E*TRADE Bank are separate but affiliated companies.
Securities products and services will be offered in the UAE by E*TRADE Securities Limited, a company registered in Scotland No. SC103238, with its principal place of business at 42nd Floor, One Canada Square, London E14 5AA, United Kingdom. E*TRADE Securities Limited is a member of the London Stock Exchange and is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Registered Office: 24 Great King Street, Edinburgh EH3 6QN, United Kingdom. E*TRADE Securities Limited is a wholly owned subsidiary of E*TRADE Financial Corporation.
The Dubai branch of E*TRADE Securities Limited is regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority. The services offered by E*TRADE Securities Limited, Dubai branch are limited to arranging and marketing. E*TRADE Securities Limited, Dubai branch will introduce all applications to trade US products to E*TRADE Securities LLC.
About the DIFC:
The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) is an onshore hub for global finance. It bridges the time gap between the financial centers of Hong Kong and London and services a region with the largest untapped emerging market for financial services.
In just under two years, over 321 firms have registered at the DIFC. They operate in an open environment complemented with world-class regulations and standards. The DIFC offers its member institutions incentives such as 100 per cent foreign ownership, zero tax on income and profits and no restrictions on foreign exchange. In addition their business benefits from modern infrastructure, operational support and business continuity facilities of uncompromisingly high standards.
The DIFC is made up of the following core bodies:
1. The DIFC Authority (DIFCA) - Responsible for the Companies and Security Registries and attracting financial as well as non-financial institutions to set up in the DIFC. The DIFC Authority is also responsible for developing the financial services industry. (www.difc.ae)
2. The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) - An independent, unitary regulatory authority, responsible for the regulation of all DIFC operations. Its principle-based primary legislation is modeled on that used in London and New York and its regulatory regime operates to standards that meet or exceed those in major financial centers. (www.dfsa.ae)
3. The DIFC Courts - An independent court system set up to uphold the provisions of DIFC laws and regulations, the courts provide comprehensive legal redress in civil and commercial matters within the DIFC. The DIFC Courts system is especially designed to deal with all of sophisticated transactions that will be conducted within DIFC. The DIFC Court laws, based on the common law, not only sets out the jurisdiction of the court but also provides for a dispute resolution services, including arbitration and mediation, thus allowing for the independent administration of justice in the DIFC. ( www.difccourts.ae)
DIFC Investments- The creation of DIFC Investments will result in the allocation to it of all non public administration activities previously carried out by DIFC Authority. This will include amongst other things all commercial and other activities such as the operation and management of any current and future subsidiaries, the development of the centre's investment strategy and relevant policies and any other strategic investments or alliances which will further the goals and objectives of the Dubai International Financial Centre and contribute to the fulfillment of the Centre's vision. Some of the companies and organizations that DIFC Investments owns include:
1. The Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX) The DIFX is the region's first international financial exchange for equities, bonds, Islamic products, funds, index products and (subject to regulatory approval) derivatives. The target areas of the DIFX for seeking issuers include the Middle East and North Africa, as well as South Africa, Turkey and the Indian sub-continent. The regulator of the DIFX is the Dubai Financial Services Authority. The DIFX is located in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and its owner is the DIFC Authority. (www.difx.ae)
2. Hawkamah- the first Institute for Corporate Governance in the region, has been established in partnership with a group of international institutions, including the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC), Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), UAE Ministry of Finance and Industry, Centre for International Private Enterprise (CIPE), International Finance Corporation (IFC), the Union of Arab Banks (UAB), Dubai School of Government (DSG), Young Arab Leaders (YAL), and the Institute of Management Development (IMD). (www.hawkamah.org) .
