Bank of Singapore to attract Middle East, Africa wealth

The private banking arm of Singapore’s second-biggest lender OCBC is targeting annual growth of assets of more than 20 percent from its new office in Dubai, which it aims to use to attract wealthy clients from the Middle East and Africa, its chief executive told Reuters on Sunday.

Bank of Singapore launched the office on Sunday in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) after receiving a license late last year to conduct private banking including investment, credit and wealth planning advisory services to its ultra-high and high net worth clients.

“Dubai will be the hub, where we will cover the MENA region and Western side,” Bahren Shaari said in an interview. “This is a pivot for not only the MENA region but also for the West.”

Bank of Singapore is expanding in a competitive market where a number of foreign banks such as Citigroup and HSBC operate alongside the private banking units of local banks.

It recently completed the acquisition of Barclays Wealth’s Singapore and Hong Kong unit which boosted its assets to $79 billion at the end of 2016.

Shaari said he expected assets managed out of its Dubai office to register a more than 20 percent compound annual growth rate over the next three to five years.