Data
Kuwait Takes Action
Striving to shake its oil dependence, Kuwait is opening up to foreign ownership. Will investors bite?
Middle East
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Q+A: Bassel Gamal; CEO, Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB Group)
QIB controls 43.5% of the Islamic banking market share in Qatar and 11.5% of the overall market and says that the long-term growth prospects remain promising.
Banking
Islamic Finance Is Gaining Ground—And Sophistication
Still finding its way onto the broader global stage, Islamic finance is expanding its reach and rising to new heights in delivering added value to consumer and business markets alike.
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Q+A: Hussain Al Qemzi; CEO, Noor Bank
Noor Bank focuses on select business segments and eyes the digital payment space that will offer some of the best opportunities over the next couple of years.
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Q+A: Majed Al-Saif; General Manager, Corporate Communications & Public Affairs, Samba Financial Group
Retail demand for Islamic finance in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the wider region keeps increasing. Growth areas include structured hedging and investment products, project and aviation finance, equity-linked and greenfield project sukuk.
News
Saudi Prince, “Minister of Everything,” Wields Power Behind Throne
<strong>Saudi Arabia</strong><br />
Known as the Minister of Everything, deputy crown prince Mohammad bin Salman, the favored 30-year-old son of the geriatric king of Saudi Arabia, is a man on a mission.
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Winner Profiles | The Best In Islamic Finance | 2016
Global Finance magazine profiles the best Islamic Financial Institutions of 2016
Banking
Japanese Banks Jump Into The Market
Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ is learning to speak Arabic.
Capital Raising & Corporate Finance
Kingdom’s Economy Sputters, Austerity Plan Unveiled
Low oil prices are taking a heavy toll on Saudi Arabia’s economy, which is facing even greater austerity under deputy crown prince Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud’s plans to raise $100 billion a year from subsidy cuts and new levies.
Economics, Policy & Regulation
Lifting The Veil On Iranian Banks
We present a rare tour of the newly opened Iranian banking sector. Westerners will be surprised by what they find—in both philosophy and performance—in this long-hidden area of the banking world.
Banking
Intent On A Global Footprint: Ali Ahmed Al-Kuwari, Qatar National Bank
By any measure QNB has major ambitions. It is the largest bank in Qatar and one of the leading financial institutions in the Middle East and Africa. It does not stop there. QNB has set its sights on becoming a global bank by 2030. QNB’s group chief executive discusses with Global Finance the regional downturn, success in Africa and its plans for a global presence.
Banking
A High-Stakes Poker Game
The Middle East is no stranger to political and economic uncertainty, but simmering religious and political tensions and stubbornly low oil prices have dealt the region a difficult hand. The question now is: How will countries play in order to win?