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"I have been to Riyadh, I met the head of SAMA (the Saudi
Arabian Monetary Authority), I made the application myself,"
Thiam said in response to a query during the bank's
second-quarter news conference.
An increasing number of western banks and fund managers are
looking to expand in the kingdom since the government unveiled a
transformation plan aimed at privatizing vast swathes of the
economy.
Citigroup <C.N> got a Saudi investment banking license in April,
which will allow it to return to the kingdom after more than 13
years, while Goldman Sachs <GS.N> received approval last August
to trade equities in Saudi Arabia.
Credit Suisse has been growing its team in Saudi Arabia and the
United Arab Emirates over the past year or so, with bankers
added within wealth management, private banking and investment
banking, according to LinkedIn.
However, Qatar Investment Authority owns a 4.94 percent stake in
Credit Suisse and bankers had said in the past that the Swiss
bank's close ties with Doha could pose a risk for winning more
Saudi business.
The UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Egypt imposed a boycott on
Qatar in June 2017, severing diplomatic and transport ties and
accusing it of supporting terrorism, which it denies.
Thiam on Tuesday denied facing any issues in the kingdom related
to the these ties.
"I can most categorically deny" that there have been delays or
issues in the application process, he said. "There is no issue
for Credit Suisse in Saudi Arabia."
(Reporting by Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi; Additional reporting by
Marwa Rashad in Riyadh; Editing by Michael Shields)
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