The UAE’s largest lender by assets, First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) has secured a financial license from the China Banking and Insurance Regulatory Commission Shanghai Office to open a branch in Shanghai.
The Shanghai branch will be FAB’s first branch in mainland China and follows the establishment of its representative office in the city in 2012. The new branch will provide both Renminbi and foreign currency business in the country.
The new branch is expected to be fully operational in the first quarter of 2022. It will be led by Mr. Arthur Zou, CEO of FAB China, who joined the Group last April. He had held several key positions in international banks across Europe and China.
The strategic expansion is expected to strengthen regional business connectivity between the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and Asia-Pacific (APAC) regions. The branch is anticipated to pave the way for increased trade and investment flows between China and the UAE.
Hana Al Rostamani Group CEO – FAB
“The UAE has a long-standing and trusted partnership with China, one that is rooted in shared values of collaboration and progress. With the expansion of our presence in Shanghai, FAB can now apply scale, expertise, and financial strength to accelerate collaboration across the priority industries of both nations. Our extended footprint in Asia means we can better serve our clients through specialized offerings and deliver the next phase of our international strategy.”
The UAE is China’s largest non-oil trading partner in MENA, with UAE-China trade volumes reaching over $50 billion with a target to expand it further to $200 billion by 2030.
“The establishment of a full FAB branch in Shanghai will advance Sino-UAE trade cooperation and deepen ties between our two countries. FAB Shanghai is a platform to align FAB’s offerings with the economic potential of the Chinese market, allowing us to provide more tailor-made solutions to Chinese clients to support their growth in the MENA while opening up a new gateway to the Chinese market for our MENA clients,” Mr. Clarence Singam-Zhou, head of international banking at FAB, stated.
FAB had assets of $268 billion as of the end of September. It was ranked by Global Finance as the ‘safest bank’ in the UAE and the Middle East, and the 32nd safest bank globally.
