Strategic move aimed at bringing the markets closer to the main business community - the Kingdoms new business address - BFH
BSE to occupy one full floor in the Harbour Mall
Manama, Bahrain - Marking a new dawn and a new leaf in the history of the Kingdom of Bahrain's financial sector, the Bahrain Stock Exchange (BSE) today announced that it had signed a tenancy agreement with the Bahrain Financial Company to relocates its offices to BFH. As per the terms of the agreement, BSE has committed to occupying the entire 4th floor of the Financial Centre locating between the two towers on an approximate area of 6400 square metres.
Commenting on the agreement, Mr. Fouad Rashid, Director of the BSE, said: "The Bahrain Stock Exchange has always aimed at offering investors an ideal as well as fair and well regulated trading platform. This also meant that we would need to be located within a technologically advanced environment that was at the heart of the Kingdom's business hub. However, with the setting up of BFH, which has been specifically designed to cater to the demanding needs of the financial services sector, we hope that the epicentre of the sector will over time move to BFH. Thus, given this background, our board of directors, took a strategic decision of moving the entire BSE to BFH." "BSE's relocation to the Bahrain Financial Harbour intends to provide a better working environment supported by a modern infrastructure, hence allowing the exchange to further develop and expand its operations," Mr. Fouad Rashid added.
The Bahrain Stock Exchange (BSE), was established in 1987 by Amiri Decree No.(4) and officially commenced operations on June 17, 1989 with twenty-nine listed companies. Currently, there are 51 companies, 33 mutual funds, and 17 Sukuk issues listed on the exchange. The BSE operates as an autonomous institution supervised by a Board of Directors, chaired by the Governor of the Central Bank of Bahrain.
Elaborating on the significance of the BSE's decision to move to BFH, Mr. Stephen Rothel, Chief Executive Officer, Bahrain Financial Harbour, said: "BFH was designed with the aim of emerging as the leading fully-integrated financial district of the Middle East. Thus far banking and finance majors including BNP Paribas, Dexia, Bank Al Falah, Gulf Finance House, Khaleeji Commercial Bank, Gulf One Investment Bank, amongst many others have already signed tenancy agreements with BFH. On the other hand there has also been a flurry of signings with services and other support companies such as Servcorp, the Al Shaya Group, the Jawad Business Group, Aramex, DHL and KFH.
"With the signing of the tenancy agreement with BSE, which is one of Middle East's oldest and most respected stock exchanges, BFH has now truly emerged as a completely integrated financial district. Furthermore, we are confident that BFH will most definitely emerge as a global financial centre." Mr. Rothel added. He also indicated that BFH is in dialogue with Bahrain stock brokerage firms which are normally anticipated to join the Exchange in BFH.
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About BFH
A fully integrated, master-planned development, the US$ 1.5 billion Bahrain Financial Harbour (BFH), is creating a complete financial city, a self contained community and reinforcing Bahrain's unsurpassed position as the financial capital of the Middle East. A first of its kind development in the region, BFH is a highly focused, committed and advanced financial environment spread over 380,000 square metres of prime seafront property in the centre of Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain. Furthermore, it comprises of 10 projects that uniquely combines business, leisure and residential components under one canopy. Phase I of the project 'The Financial Centre' which includes the Harbour Towers - Bahrain's tallest towers and the Harbour Mall. The Financial Centre is operational and open for business.
For more information, please contact:
Shazia Kamili
Tel: 050-7264392
© Press Release 2007
