January 2008
Wants to grow aggressively in the emirates

Bank of Baroda (BoB), the largest networked foreign bank with about 2,900 branches the world over and also the only Indian bank to have a branch presence in the UAE, is seriously considering strengthening its presence here, according to the bank's top man.

Talking to The Business Weekly in an exclusive interview recently, Dr Anil K Khandelwal, chairman and managing director of the bank, said the bank wants to make Dubai the hub for its Middle East operations and enter other un-represented GCC markets such as Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

"We have already got a licence for wholesale banking in Bahrain and are all set to apply for a licence in DIFC once the regulatory approvals from Reserve Bank of India (RBI) are in place," said Dr Khandelwal.

"Though it could prove to be difficult for the time being to increase the number of branches in the UAE from the current six to eight, we are open to the idea of acquiring a bank with a limited branch network in order to strengthen our presence," he said, adding that he is yet to give this a serious thought.

He said BoB at any cost aspires to be aggressive in the GCC which has contributed about nine per cent to the bank's global profit.

"This could increase to 10 to 12 per cent within two to three years," Dr Khandelwal added. He said that there is huge opportunity in the UAE in the areas of trading, manufacturing and advisory services for NRIs on investment in India which is going through one of its best periods.

"We will help the Indian manufacturers set up units within the numerous economic zones the UAE has created. We are in talks with the authorities on what can be done from the bank's side to achieve a meaningful co-operation on this front," the CMD said. BoB, which is already present in 24 countries with about 66 branches, is in the process of increasing its presence through more countries and more branches.

By Amit Chettupuzha

© The Business Weekly 2008