Banque du Caire announced it has opened a representative office in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) as a focal point between the bank and its customers, as the bank aims to strengthen its presence abroad, in line with an ambitious strategy that tops the list of the current board's priorities, in order to achieve regional expansion and boost foreign trade. The UAE office aims to enhance the joint investments between Egypt and the UAE in particular, and other Gulf countries in general, according to the banks' CEO, Tarek Fayed. In addition, it targets promoting trade between Egypt and the Gulf region, attracting more Arab investments to Egypt, financing trade operations, and luring Egyptians' money transfers to Egypt. "This office targets increasing the market share of Egyptians' money transfers up to 15%, in the light of the stability of exchange rates," Fayed said, pointing out that Banque du Caire is already dominating 10% of the total amount of Egyptians' money transfers from Gulf countries. He stressed that the bank's strategy is not only targeting the local market but will also include the overseas expansion, with a focus on the Arab Gulf as a first step. "The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) and the UAE have approved the launch of our office in the UAE, as we contracted with exchange companies in Gulf countries to attract Egyptians' transfers, as part of our inclusive plan of the bank to support Egypt's economic activities abroad," Fayed said. "The support we have received from the UAE Central Bank, in facilitating the licence in no time, is solid proof of the strong relations between the two countries," the CEO added. According to Fayed, Banque du Caire seeks to boost trade between Egypt and African countries, through its branch in Kampala, the Ugandan capital, which is under reconstruction now, to become a platform to penetrate the African market through the banking giants in Africa. The bank has set an expansion plan on a regional level, through increasing the network of correspondents for banks in African and Arab countries, to facilitate the transactions for bank's customers in those countries, according to the bank's Executive Vice Chairperson Amr El Shafei, in addition to strengthening the bank's relations with other banks in Africa and the Gulf area. "The bank is prioritising using modern technology in all transactions, as well as providing our offices with the most brilliant banking experiences, and qualified manpower, to provide our customers with the best service," El Shafei said. "Choosing the UAE to be a site for our office stems from its importance as a regional hub for the multi-national corporates," the Head of Banque du Caire's bureau in UAE, Ashraf Khalil, said, adding that the bank's mission is to provide its customers in the Gulf with the necessary support, such as exchange companies, financial and non-financial institutions, etc. "The office is coordinating with the Egyptian consulate and embassy in the UAE to promote investments in Egypt, and is working on marketing all the bank's services to its customers," Khalil added.
