Emirates NBD is looking to expand its private banking business, focusing mainly on Singapore, reports Reuters, citing comments made by the bank’s chief financial officer at the Reuters Middle East Investment Summit.

Sanjay Uppal is reported to have said that Emirates NBD will look into leveraging its presence in Singapore, focusing on regional clients as the bank’s “sweet spot” at this time.

This year Emirates NBD has doubled its number of relationship managers to 50, according to the publication, and significant further hires may be expected. “There are broad opportunities in areas where we are unrepresented and we continue to hire,” Mr Uppal said.

The UAE-based bank’s plans for Singapore can be seen in the context of the wealth management industry increasingly looking to Asia for future growth on the back of burgeoning numbers of high net worth individuals in many of the region’s countries. This year’s Merrill Lynch/Cap Gemini World Wealth Report  predicts that by 2013 the Asia Pacific region will have overtaken North America in terms of high net worth individuals’ financial wealth.

Emirates NBD has been visibly building up its private banking operations in the Middle East recently, making a number of high profile hires. Earlier in this month WealthBriefing exclusively revealed the appointment of Ashraf Bajsair as a senior director focused on the Saudi Arabian market, while Gary Dugan, formerly chief investment officer for Europe, Middle East and Africa at Merrill Lynch was appointed chief investment officer for Emirates NBD’s private banking unit in April.

Emirates NBD, which is the result of a merger between Emirates Bank and National Bank of Dubai, is the biggest banking group in the Middle East in terms of assets. In addition to the UAE, the firm has operations in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UK and Jersey, along with its representative offices in India, Iran and Singapore.