Speaking on a conference call, National Bank of Abu Dhabi chief executive officer Michael Tomalin was quoted by Bloomberg as saying that Turkey represented an important market for the company.
Set to seek permission to establish a unit in the country, the Abu Dhabi-based lender plans to expand "as a bank in trade finance, as a bank in capital markets, as an investment bank," Tomalin added.
The decision follows an unsuccessful bid by the company to find a suitable acquisition target in the country.
Justifying the bank’s move to start the corporate banking operation afresh in Turkey, he pointed that NBAD had the option to acquire a bank with nearly 70 branches.
The option was not exercised as it would have led the bank to compete with Turkish lenders operating 1,000 branches.
Turkish government has initiated various programs to lure international financial organizations to set up their business in the country, as part of its plan to develop Istanbul into a global financial hub by 2023.
Russia-based lender OAO Sberbank (SBER) purchased Denizbank for TRY6.47bn ($3.6bn) in June, while in 2011 Spain’s Banco Bilbao Vizcaya Argentaria (BBVA) acquired 25% stake in Turkiye Garanti Bankasi, for $5.8bn, the news agency reported.
Other lenders in the Gulf Cooperation Council such as the Qatar National Bank had also expressed interest in December last year to expand operations in Turkey.
