Bank of Baroda returning to Bahrain after 15 years
Thursday, 20 March 2008, 19:30 IST
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Dubai: Leading Indian public sector bank, Bank of Baroda, will return to Bahrain this Sunday after a 15-year absence. The new wholesale branch of India's fifth largest bank will be opened in Manama under a licence granted by the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB), according to a report in the Gulf Daily News. The bank had first opened an offshore banking unit in Bahrain in 1980. But it was closed in 1993 due to the foreign exchange crisis in India at that time. "The CBB welcomes the return of Bank of Baroda to Bahrain," said CBB licensing and policy director Ahmed Abdul Aziz Al Bassam. "The business environment for wholesale banking is particularly attractive, given the economic boom taking place in the Middle East region and India." According to the report, the new wholesale branch operation in Bahrain will target high net worth individuals and corporates in the region. It will mainly focus on deposit products, loans and syndications, trade finance and structured products, treasury products and services as well as participating in debt market and private banking/wealth management services. Bank of Baroda's total assets stood at $36.4 billion for the fiscal year ending March 31 last year, while net profit for the year amounted to $261 million.
Source: IANS
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