Singapore’s DBS Bank, one of the biggest lenders in Asia, plans to boost its presence in Dubai and use the emirate as a hub to better access other markets and source business in the broader Middle East and Africa region, its group chief executive said.
The bank is currently in the process of reviewing business plans for strengthening its base in Dubai, the commercial and trading hub of the Middle East, Piyush Gupta told delegates at the Dubai FinTech Summit on Tuesday.
“I think the south-south corridors are really picking up and that includes not just the Middle East, it also includes Africa into Asia,” he said.
“I think Dubai is a really great location to be able to centre activities from here and we already do that for wealth management. You can do that for a lot of stuff [including] the East African corridor, the Saudi corridor and the Middle East corridor.”
Taking advantage of the south-south trade and the capital flows by leveraging its presence in Dubai “to me is the low hanging fruit first”, he said of the bank’s plans for the wider region in the next five to 10 years.
DBS is among several banks, hedge funds and other financial institution that are looking to boost their presence in the Dubai and use their base in emirate to access business in other regional markets including Saudi Arabia, the Arab world’s biggest economy.
Dubai International Financial Centre, one of the biggest financial hubs in the Middle East Africa and South Asia, is home to 17 of the world’s top 20 banks, 25 of the world’s top 30 “systemically important” global financial institutions and five of the world's top 10 global insurance companies.
The emirate’s direct connectivity with Asia, Africa, the Middle East and markets in Europe as well as the ease of trade and capital flows to and from the emirate to these regions make it a favoured destination for financial institutions.
The financial centre grew at a record pace last year, with the number of active registered companies climbing by 20 per cent while its annual revenue exceeded Dh1 billion ($288 million) for the first time, amid the emirate's strong economic momentum.
The centre has a pipeline of more than 50 hedge funds, with more than $1 trillion in assets under management that are waiting to be licensed, DIFC governor Essa Kazim said in February.
Total banking assets booked in the DIFC hit $199 billion at the end of 2022, while wealth and asset management portfolio managers in the centre invested $164 billion last year.
DBS established its DIFC operations in 2006, becoming the first Singapore-headquartered lender to receive a licence to operate from the centre.
It offers wholesale banking products and services including corporate and investment banking, debt and capital markets, treasury management, institutional equity sales and global transaction services.
It also caters to private banking customers in the region through its Dubai base, according to its website.
In 2010, DBS’ licence was upgraded to category 1, which permits the lender to book loans and carry out trade finance activities locally.
There are a lot of similarities between Singapore and Dubai and hubs such as these have a vital role to play in a multi-polar world, facilitating trade and capital flows to and from markets in the West and the East, Mr Gupta said.
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Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
Company%20profile
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The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre V8 twin-turbocharged and three electric motors
Power: Combined output 920hp
Torque: 730Nm at 4,000-7,000rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch automatic
Fuel consumption: 11.2L/100km
On sale: Now, deliveries expected later in 2025
Price: expected to start at Dh1,432,000
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Jetour T1 specs
Engine: 2-litre turbocharged
Power: 254hp
Torque: 390Nm
Price: From Dh126,000
Available: Now
Most sought after workplace benefits in the UAE
- Flexible work arrangements
- Pension support
- Mental well-being assistance
- Insurance coverage for optical, dental, alternative medicine, cancer screening
- Financial well-being incentives
The five pillars of Islam
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MATCH INFO
Champions League quarter-final, first leg
Tottenham Hotspur v Manchester City, Tuesday, 11pm (UAE)
Matches can be watched on BeIN Sports
Sunday's fixtures
- Bournemouth v Southampton, 5.30pm
- Manchester City v West Ham United, 8pm
Countries recognising Palestine
France, UK, Canada, Australia, Portugal, Belgium, Malta, Luxembourg, San Marino and Andorra
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FIRST TEST SCORES
England 458
South Africa 361 & 119 (36.4 overs)
England won by 211 runs and lead series 1-0
Player of the match: Moeen Ali (England)
Things Heard & Seen
Directed by: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
Starring: Amanda Seyfried, James Norton
2/5
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
Western Region Asia Cup T20 Qualifier
Sun Feb 23 – Thu Feb 27, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the Asia qualifier in Malaysia in August
Group A
Bahrain, Maldives, Oman, Qatar
Group B
UAE, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia
UAE group fixtures
Sunday Feb 23, 9.30am, v Iran
Monday Feb 25, 1pm, v Kuwait
Tuesday Feb 26, 9.30am, v Saudi
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza, Rohan Mustafa, Alishan Sharafu, Ansh Tandon, Vriitya Aravind, Junaid Siddique, Waheed Ahmed, Karthik Meiyappan, Basil Hameed, Mohammed Usman, Mohammed Ayaz, Zahoor Khan, Chirag Suri, Sultan Ahmed
In numbers
Number of Chinese tourists coming to UAE in 2017 was... 1.3m
Alibaba’s new ‘Tech Town’ in Dubai is worth... $600m
China’s investment in the MIddle East in 2016 was... $29.5bn
The world’s most valuable start-up in 2018, TikTok, is valued at... $75bn
Boost to the UAE economy of 5G connectivity will be... $269bn
The specs
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 502hp at 7,600rpm
Torque: 637Nm at 5,150rpm
Transmission: 8-speed dual-clutch auto
Price: from Dh317,671
On sale: now
RESULTS
Main card
Bantamweight 56.4kg: Mehdi Eljamari (MAR) beat Abrorbek Madiminbekov (UZB), Split points decision
Super heavyweight 94 kg: Adnan Mohammad (IRN) beat Mohammed Ajaraam (MAR), Split points decision
Lightweight 60kg: Zakaria Eljamari (UAE) beat Faridoon Alik Zai (AFG), RSC round 3
Light heavyweight 81.4kg: Taha Marrouni (MAR) beat Mahmood Amin (EGY), Unanimous points decision
Light welterweight 64.5kg: Siyovush Gulmamadov (TJK) beat Nouredine Samir (UAE), Unanimous points decision
Light heavyweight 81.4kg: Ilyass Habibali (UAE) beat Haroun Baka (ALG), KO second round
Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
- Discounts on sales price of off-plan units
- Flexible payment plans from developers
- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
The specs
Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
Transmission: seven-speed
Power: 620bhp
Torque: 760Nm
Price: Dh898,000
On sale: now
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Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
U19 WORLD CUP, WEST INDIES
UAE group fixtures (all in St Kitts)
- Saturday 15 January: UAE beat Canada by 49 runs
- Thursday 20 January: v England
- Saturday 22 January: v Bangladesh
UAE squad:
Alishan Sharafu (captain), Shival Bawa, Jash Giyanani, Sailles
Jaishankar, Nilansh Keswani, Aayan Khan, Punya Mehra, Ali Naseer, Ronak Panoly,
Dhruv Parashar, Vinayak Raghavan, Soorya Sathish, Aryansh Sharma, Adithya
Shetty, Kai Smith
