JS Bank arrives in Bahrain
Pakistan-based JS Bank opened its branch in the Kingdom, for the first time outside its home country.
The announcement was made by Chairman Jahangir Siddiqui, along with President and CEO, Khalid Imran, Group Head, Treasury, Wholesale and Investment Banking, Basir Shamsie, General Manager, Waqar Ul Islam and Head of Business Development and Overseas Operations, Treasury Investment Banking and Financial Institutions, Khawaja Almas in a press conference yesterday.
The bank which has US$2 billion in assets and clocked a very high cumulative-growth-rate of 40pc, choose Bahrain as its Middle East entry point, due to the fact that wholesale-banking operations licence in Bahrain not only offers all the advantages that special licences in other countries in the region gives but also a great regulatory environment and ease of doing business and an attractive financial market, according to Shamsie
The announcement follows the awarding of a wholesale conventional banking licence to JS Bank by the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) last year. Its service offerings will include trade finance, treasury, institutional banking, corporate banking, and private banking and wealth management. In Pakistan it has full-fledged retail operations with more than 277 branches spread across 138 cities.
US$130 million capital base
The Bahrain branch will be having a capital base of US$130 million and will be located in Bahrain Financial Harbour. The company balance sheet is expected to touch US$30-40m in the first two years. JS Bank is part of JS Group, one of Pakistan’s largest and most prominent business entities, he added
He told DT News that regional corporates operating out of the Kingdom will be the bank’s target market along with capital, primarily expatriates in the MENA region and also the bank will be promoting capital-market products, both from Pakistan and GCC to the customers in both region. He added that the bank will be now making a big digital push to attract the younger generation.
The Chairman of the JS group, Jahangir Siddiqui, said that it is the dedication of the employees and customers, as well as the quality of service rendered to the bank’s customers in Pakistan that helped it to attain the spectacular and steady growth rate, despite heavy competition.
President and CEO, Khalid Imran said that the bank achieved great growth despite many hurdles, and in Bahrain, the bank will witness good growth. Even though the Kingdom as well as the region might be facing economic pressures due to low oil prices, the bank see good prospects for the coming decades.
He added that the strong asset quality and balance sheet position of the bank helped it gain approval from the Central Bank of Bahrain. He expects strong growth to continue for the bank and double the balance sheet within three years.
A positive reflection
CBB Director of Licensing and Policy, Ahmed Al Bassam welcomed JS Bank’s presence in Bahrain.
“The growing number of Pakistani banks with branches in Bahrain is a positive reflection of the attractiveness of the Kingdom’s banking sector, and builds upon historic trade relations between the two countries. We welcome this positive trend and look forward to working closely with JS Bank in the years ahead,” he said.
Siddiqui said, “The GCC was already an important market for us which we now seek to develop further through a physical presence here. In addition to having two banking hubs in Bahrain and Dubai, the region also has a sizeable Pakistani expatriate community, including many running their own businesses who have a strong need for our services. The ties between the GCC and Pakistan, both economic and diplomatic, date back decades, and we are committed to helping to further strengthen this relationship, while also serving the business community.”
The opening of the Bahrain branch is an important milestone for us as it gives us our first footprint outside of Pakistan, which we plan to use as a springboard for further expansion into MENA,” Imran added.
WaqarUl Islam Executive VP
The bank has appointed WaqarUl Islam as Executive Vice President and General Manager of the Bahrain branch. An accomplished international banker with more than 38 years of professional experience in London, the Cayman Islands, Luxembourg, the UAE and Bahrain, he has a strong track record in soliciting and developing new business from financial Institutions in Europe, MENA and South East Asia.
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