Global Fortune 500-listed State Bank of India (SBI), has started providing
a complete range of banking services from its base in the Dubai International
Financial Centre (DIFC), the bank announced on September 15.
SBI has received a full banking license from the regulator, the Dubai Financial
Services Authority (DFSA), which enables its DIFC branch to accept deposits
and provide credit, subject to the regulations of the DFSA.
India's number one bank has also obtained a Retail Endorsement to its license,
which enables it to arrange investments for retail customers and offer credit
to small and medium-size enterprises.
SBI's DIFC Branch will provide trade finance and short-term working capital
loans including Letters of Credit (LC) and Bank Guarantees, term loans, project
finance and as well as syndication of credit requirements at highly competitive
rates. The branch has a special desk to handle LC related activity.
The branch can arrange and advise on the investment products of the State
Bank Group and other reputed fund houses. It can also accept deposits from non-UAE-based
Professional Clients/Corporates in US Dollars, Euros and GBP.
Omar Bin Sulaiman, Governor of the DIFC and Vice-Chairman of the UAE Central
Bank, said: "The expansion of the SBI's services out of DIFC is a clear
testimony to the vast opportunities that the region's financial services industry
offers banking firms. SBI is not new to our region, as it has been serving a
wide client base in the Gulf. From its base in DIFC, SBI can now broaden this
experience by serving a larger region covering the Middle East, North Africa
and the Caspian."
Abdulla Al Awar, CEO of the DIFC Authority said: "Over the past year,
an increasing number of banking and financial institutions from major Asian
emerging markets like India have been establishing a presence in DIFC. DIFC
seeks to establish stronger linkages with the financial sectors of India and
other Asian markets through targeted outreach programs. With its long experience
of doing business in the Middle East, and its status as the leading state-owned
bank in India, SBI can play a key role in strengthening financial and investment
ties between India and the Middle East region."
SBI’s Chief Executive Officer at its DIFC Branch, AJ Vidyasagar, added:
"SBI has upgraded its operations in the region despite the present economic
downturn, which reflects our immense faith in the potential of the UAE and the
wider market and also in our own ability to do profitable business under any
circumstances. The trading and industrial community in the Gulf consists of
many companies with an Indian connection, which is a base for the bank to further
build its business across the wider region.”
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