Sabah – The National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD) from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is warming up to the idea of doing corporate banking in Türkiye, according to its CEO Michael Tomalin.
“Türkiye is a priority market for NBAD in which we plan to operate in trade finance and corporate banking..” Tomalin said. The Abu-Dhabi-based lender previously considered acquiring a 70-branch local bank to operate deposit banking in Türkiye but later gave up the idea due to intense competition.
“By initiating corporate banking operations in Türkiye, NBAD will focus on regional trade and take part in the exchange of capital and trade between Türkiye and the Middle East..”, NBAD CEO said about their plans regarding Türkiye.
Türkiye’s lucrative banking sector has been attracting large-scale foreign investments from lenders in Europe, the Middle East and the Far East in recent years. Russia’s Sberbank acquired Denizbank last June for USD 3.6 billion while Spain’s Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) took over 25 percent stakes in Türkiye’s largest lender, Garanti Bank, for USD 5.8 billion in 2011.
Lebanon’s Bank Audi, the first foreign lender to be issued a banking license in Türkiye for over 10 years, has opened its first branch in the country under the name of Odeabank last November. Other banking institutions from the Gulf such as Qatar’s Commercial Bank of Qatar, Kuwaiti Burgan, and Saudi National Commercial Bank are also active in Türkiye.
From farther corners of the world, three of Japan’s largest lenders Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ (BTMU), Mizuho Corporate, and Sumitomo Mitsui also made their entry into the country last year. BTMU was granted a Turkish banking license while Mizuho Corporate and Sumitomo Mitsui both opened representative offices in Istanbul, Türkiye’s increasingly international financial hub.