Citigroup plans hiring
drive as it re-enters Saudi Arabia
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[October 25, 2017]
By Saeed Azhar, Hadeel Al Sayegh and Katie Paul
RIYADH (Reuters) -
Citigroup wants to hire up to 20 bankers in Saudi
Arabia, where it plans to formally begin operations in
the first quarter after obtaining an investment banking
license in the kingdom, a senior executive said.Saudi
Arabia's economic reform program would create investment
banking opportunities through privatizations and by
encouraging more savings by the population, Carmen
Haddad, chief executive officer of Citi Saudi Arabia,
told Reuters |
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The bank obtained a license in April to conduct capital markets
business in Saudi Arabia, a move enabling Citigroup to return to
the kingdom to offer banking services after an absence of almost
13 years.
More than a dozen foreign banks have licenses to operate
branches in Saudi Arabia. Several international lenders want to
build a presence as opportunities emerge from the kingdom's
reforms to wean the economy off a reliance on oil revenues.
The opportunities include an array of privatizations such as the
government's plan to list up to 5 percent of Saudi Aramco [IPO-ARMO.SE]
in an initial public share offering.
They also include steps such as raising the proportion of Saudis
who own homes and encouraging more consumers to save.
Citi exited Saudi Arabia in 2004, when it sold a 20 percent
stake in Samba Financial Group <1090.SE>. In 2015, it obtained
permission from the Saudi regulator to invest directly in the
country's stock market.
(Editing by Edmund Blair)
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