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National Bank of Kuwait to open cap...
The National Bank of Kuwait plans to open a subscription period for a capital raise on October 5 until October 21, the bank has said in a statement to the Kuwait bourse, which Bloomberg has reported. Last March, shareholders of the country's largest lender approved raising the bank's capital by 10% to KD359.8m ($1.25bn).
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Karzai brother's Kabul Bank villa d...
A major shareholder of Kabul Bank made Dh3 million profit after using a loan from the institution to buy a Palm Jumeirah villa from the bank's chairman, The National can reveal.
Mahmoud Karzai, a brother of the Afghan president, Hamid Karzai, bought the villa on July 2 2007 and resold it in early 2008, according to records.
Mr Karzai, who owns 7 per cent of the ailing Kabul Bank, said in an interview yesterday there was "nothing wrong" with the transaction.
"I did it to get my residency visa," he said. "My children were going to school here. I was not a big property investor in Dubai."
Mr Karzai confirmed the selling price was about Dh10m, against the purchase price of Dh7m.
Original Posting At: TheNational
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MENA outperforms global stocks in A...
Middle East and North Africa (MENA) markets outperformed international markets throughout August, according to the latest MENA markets report from Rasmala Investment Bank.
There were renewed concerns for investors throughout August as there was a slowdown in the global economic recovery. Most Middle East benchmarks traded sideways as uncertainty and global volatility is keeping investors on the sidelines, according to Rasmala.
Global news supporting this viewpoint included reports of a deceleration of China's economic activity, the Bank of England's downgrade of the UK's growth outlook and weak US housing data. On a regional level, the overlap of Ramadan and summer combined with a lack of catalysts lead to the lowest volumes in several years for some of the local markets.
Original Posting At: Zawya
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Nasdaq Dubai equities value jumps 20pc
Nasdaq Dubai, the international financial exchange serving the region between Western Europe and East Asia, said its equities traded value rose by 20 per cent in August compared to the same period last year.
It was the first full month of trading since the exchange outsourced its operations to Dubai Financial Market (DFM) on July 11, 2010, said a statement from Nasdaq Dubai.
The August value reached $78.7 million, up from $65.5 million in August 2009. The proportion traded by individual investors, as opposed to institutions, also increased.
Volume for the month fell by nine per cent to 158.6 million shares, from 175.2 million in the same 2009 period, it added.
Original Posting At: TradeArabia
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Key Egypt minister to join World Bank
Egyptian Investment Minister Mahmoud Mohieldin, a prominent economic liberalizer, will resign from the Egyptian government to take up a senior post at the World Bank beginning in October, the cabinet said on Wednesday.
Expectations that he would take the World Bank post has led to media speculation about possible successors for his ministerial portfolio, seen as vital to an economic team that has pushed through controversial free market reforms since 2004.
"As soon as he takes up the new position, he will leave the ministry," said cabinet spokesman Magdy Rady.
The state-run egynews.net website said possible contenders to head the ministry included Ziad Bahaa el-Din, who is the chairman of Egypt's financial regulatory agency.
Original Posting At: TradeArabia
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UAE central bank freezes four Irani...
The UAE central bank has frozen four Iranian accounts from a list of 41 names which the UN Security Council requested to have their accounts frozen, Arabic Al Ittihad has reported, citing an unnamed central bank official. The remaining 37 do not have bank accounts in the country, the official said.
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Former Shuaa Securities chief joins...
The former chief executive of Dubai-based investment bank Shuaa Capital's brokerage unit has been hired by an Abu Dhabi investment bank as chief investment officer.
Mohammed Ali Yasin, former head of Shuaa Securities who resigned in June, will start with CAPM Investment on Sept. 15 and will help the firm expand operations in the Gulf Arab region and its home market, CAPM Investment said in a statement.
Yasin was named chief executive of Shuaa Securities in 2006, and oversaw the firm's rapid expansion across the Middle East, emerging as the second-largest broker in the UAE by market share.
Original Posting At: KippReport
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NBAD among World's 50 Safest Banks ...
The National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) has been ranked among the 'World's 50 Safest Banks in 2010' by Global Finance for the second consecutive year.
The world's 50 safest banks 2010 were selected through a comparison of the long-term credit ratings and total assets of the 500 largest banks around the world. Ratings from Moody's, Standard & Poor's and Fitch were used.
"We are delighted that NBAD has been recognized as one of world's 50 safest banks and the safest bank in the UAE for the second year in a row especially as it comes during a period of unprecedented market turbulence," said Michael Tomalin, the Group Chief Executive of NBAD.
Original Posting At: Zawya
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Mashreq opens new branch in Dubai
UAE-based financial services firm Mashreq has opened a new branch in Mall of the Emirates, Dubai, to meet the banking requirements of the mall visitors.
Mashreq has also installed four ATM machines inside the mall and metro station for customers.
Mashreq Retail Banking head Douglas Beckett said that the bank will shortly open two new branches in Abu Dhabi and Dubai to enhance network.
Mashreq Distribution head Gavin Sanderson said that bank's strategic focus is to offer customers a convenient experience of comprehensive banking services.
"This includes facilitating customer friendly atmosphere and offering various banking services under one roof, be it in a branch, an ATM location, MashreqOnline or Mashreq MobileBanking," Sanderson said.
Original Posting At: BankingBusinessReview
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Beirut is world's 10th most expensi...
Lebanon's capital, Beirut, is the 10th most expensive rental city in the world for expatriate housing in 2010, compared with its rank of 28 last year, Byblos Bank said.
The city is ahead of Paris, Abu Dhabi, Amsterdam, Geneva and Rio de Janeiro and behind Singapore, Osaka, New York City, Moscow, Hong Kong and London, the bank said in an e-mailed report, citing a survey by EuroCost International.
Beirut is the most expensive city in the Middle East this year, because of the increase in rental prices, the bank reported, citing the survey, which evaluated the average rental cost of two- and three-bedroom apartments for expatriates.
Original Posting At: ArabianBusiness
