Gulf Bank Eyes Riches From "West-East" Corridor - Report

Tom Burroughes

5 December 2014

National Bank of Abu Dhabi PJSC reportedly expects to expand its money management business overseas and exploit emerging market growth, a Bloomberg report said.

Chief executive Alex Thursby told the news service that assets under management have risen this year by 51 per cent to $3.1 billion, with about half of that coming from wealthy individuals and institutions. Thursby said the bank intends to build hubs in nine global cities expected to benefit from a “west-east” corridor from West Africa to China.
Funds management “is a really important ingredient to our future and non-funded revenue,” Thursby was quoted as saying in an interview in Dubai. He joined the bank from Australia & New Zealand Banking Group.

NBAD will probably expand its funds management business into “markets that are similar or more emerging in style,” Thursby said. “I have no ability to be a good manager for Chinese securities, I am not sure I can for India but maybe Malaysia, maybe some parts of Africa,” he said.

Growth expansion aims will pit the likes of NBAD against Western banks seeking to penetrate the Gulf region and emerging markets, such as Switzerland’s Julius Baer, which was interviewed earlier this week by this publication.