First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) has obtained a custody license in Egypt, the latest milestone for its Middle East and North Africa (MENA) expansion plans.
The license, granted by Egypt’s Financial Regulatory Authority (FRA), will facilitate its membership to Misr, the country’s central securities depositary (CSD) for clearing and settlement of trades executed on The Egyptian Exchange (EGX).
It follows FAB’s recent agreement to acquire Bank Audi Egypt, including its local custody business, which will supplement FAB’s custody services expansion in Egypt. After the acquisition, FAB will be one of the largest foreign banks in Egypt with more than $8.1 billion of assets.
“FAB has operated in Egypt since 1975 and the addition of Egypt custody services further emphasises our commitment to the market,” said Kashif Darr, managing director and head of securities services, FAB.
“We will offer domestic investors a full range of world class post-trade solutions, with our direct MCDR connectivity at its core. We will also intermediate international capital flows into this strategic market, as part of our regional direct custody platform.”
Egypt is the fourth direct custody market FAB has added to its Middle East proprietary network in the past year, which now spans UAE, Saudi Arabia, Oman, Bahrain, Lebanon and Egypt, with Kuwait and Qatar to follow.
FAB now manages the region’s largest direct custody network, offering investors access to the Middle East region.