CAIRO: The Ahli United Bank Group celebrated the acquisition of Delta International Bank, one of Egypt s leading private banks in a press conference held at the Four Seasons Garden City, Monday. Reviewing its progress over the past decade, the Ahli United Bank Group promised to create an unrivalled ability to meet Egyptian customers needs. In August 2006, a group of investors led by the Ahli United Bank Group acquired an 89.3 percent stake in Egypt s Delta International Bank. Today, Delta International Bank is being officially renamed Ahli United Bank-Egypt. Over the last few years the bank has been given numerous awards by various prestigious business publications and has recently been named Best Bank in the Middle East for 2007 by Global Finance Magazine. As a commercial and investment banking institution based in Bahrain, the Ahli United Bank (AUB) provides wealth management, retail, corporate, treasury, offshore and private banking services. James Goold, AUB Egypt CEO and managing director told The Daily Star Egypt, We are geared towards growth through the development of a larger client base in the Gulf States and through the close partnerships we share with customers, staff, and product providers. It is with my pleasure to bring that same efficiency to Egypt. Through its acquisition, AUB now operates 17 branches in Egypt, located in Cairo and Alexandria. Bank customers can expect that number to grow in the near future as AUB plans to execute an expansion plan to serve the needs of customers throughout thw whole of Egypt. In addition to its holdings in Egypt, Hossam Osman, AUB s general manager of Treasury and Financial Institutions announced that AUB has had a wide array of international assets and investment, including an effective holding of 75 percent share in the Bank of Kuwait and the Middle East (BKME), along with a 40 percent share in Ahli Bank Q.S.C. (formerly known as Ahli Bank of Qatar), as well as a 49 percent share in the Commercial Bank of Iraq. As a thirty year veteran of the banking industry in Egypt, and having served in management positions in both public and private sector banks, Goold has confidence in Osman to handle all kinds of banking operations for AUB -Egypt. Reporting total assets of $19.1 billion as of September 2006, AUB plans to implement an expansion plan to position itself as the bank of choice for its targeted clientele. Yet in spite of its achievements, there is apparent concern that prospective customers are not being well informed of AUB s strategy. Housing a distinguished range of financial institutions, Egyptian economists are eager to see what change AUB -Egypt can bring in the coming months. Attending the conference was Hassan Abdel- Hamid, general manager of AUB -Egypt's Private Banking sector. "One thing we can be proud of is the significant progress the Ahli banking group has made in a relatively short time frame. Our financial results have become milestones, bearing testimony to a successful implementation of a business model built on an effective profit-focused mergers strategy, Hamid said. "There shouldn't be any concern as to how we will implement our values. "One could hope to expect more investment from the Gulf region. We also have major projects ahead that will offer a more dynamic setting for AUB-Egypt employees. We've already started offering crash courses on customer service, said Goold. Having already invested more than LE 2 billion on purchasing Delta International Bank and injecting new capital, AUB will continue to invest significant amounts in AUB-Egypt to upgrade its technology, branches, products and most importantly, the skills and knowledge of its employees. Goold and his ambitious team of general managers also hope to model themselves for other Egyptian banks to follow their new and innovative strategy into the Egyptian market.
