National Bank of Fujairah, the Dubai-based bank, is setting up shop in Hong Kong through a partnership with Wells Fargo Bank.

The memorandum of agreement between the two firms was signed on the sidelines of the International Monetary Fund - World Bank meetings in Tokyo in the first week of October 2012. 

Upon regulatory approval, NBF's Hong Kong unit will offer letters of credit reissuance services to Asian firms exporting to the bank's clients in the UAE. 

"We are keen to use our presence in Hong Kong to facilitate cross-border flows between the UAE and Asia and entrench NBF's reputation as a key provider of trade services," commented RS Rangan, head of trade services for National Bank of Fujairah.

Besides the UAE, NBF also operates in the US through another partnership with Wells Fargo. In 2011, the bank signed a two-year trade finance agreement with the US bank worth US$25 million.