Zand, the first digital bank to provide both retail and corporate services, reveals shareholders, marking yet another milestone in preparation for an imminent launch.
The list includes, in alphabetical order, Aditya Birla Group (Solfrid Investments Pte. Ltd), Al Hail Holding LLC, Al Sayyah and Sons Investments LLC, Franklin Templeton, Global Development Group, HE Mohamed Alabbar, Mr. Olivier Crespin, and Mr. Yusuff Ali M. A.
His Excellency Mohamed Alabbar, Zand’s Chairman, said “We have a strong group of shareholders who believe in creating long-term value for our customers. With their support, Zand is set to reshape the future of banking.”
“In addition to their impressive track records, prominent reputation and extensive experience, each shareholder brings a new perspective to our industry which will be the backbone of Zand’s market proposition.”
As a champion of technological innovation, Alabbar plays a key role in establishing Dubai as the Middle East’s Silicon Valley and the UAE as a world leader in digital transformation.
The Aditya Birla Group, under the leadership of Chairman Mr. Kumar Mangalam Birla, brings unmatched global operating experience across diverse sectors and markets spanning 36 countries, and a formidable financial services experience with funds under management of $57 billion. The group with a century old legacy has a market cap of about $75 billion.
With its diverse contribution to the UAE economy, the leading investment company Al Hail Holding is set to strengthen Zand’s reach within the UAE.
As a visionary investment company, Al Sayyah and Sons Investments brings a rich portfolio of innovative projects and a vision for sustainability through design.
Franklin Templeton, one of the world’s largest global asset managers with over $1.5 trillion in assets under management[1], has 75 years of investment experience, a breadth of capabilities and strategies and a deep commitment to the evolution of FinTech. The company has been present in the Middle East for more than two decades.
The Abu Dhabi-based holding company Global Development Group brings 30 years of experience in building extensive local and regional partnerships.
Mr. Yusuff Ali M. A, the Chairman and Managing Director of the retail conglomerate Lulu Group, is a visionary who will strengthen Zand’s evolutionary path.
With over 20 years of global experience in banking and FinTech, Co-founder and CEO of Zand, Olivier Crespin, is leveraging hybrid digital strategies to build the bank. He said, “We have an ideal foundation to launch Zand with shareholders who encompass a complete local and international ecosystem.”
“Our shareholders inspire us to build relevant products and innovative solutions that meet the needs of customers in the digital age.”
This announcement comes at the heel of the recent acquisition of the majority shares in Dubai Bank by Zand’s shareholders.
Zand is providing the opportunity to stay updated on its progress via an early-access list on its website, www.zand.ae.
About Zand
Zand, the first digital bank to provide both retail and corporate banking, is set for imminent launch in the UAE, subject to final regulatory approvals from the Central Bank of UAE. In addition to innovative banking services, Zand is set to be a digital economic accelerator, providing the foundations for a broader generation of digital services. Through fully digital offerings, Zand will make banking quicker and simpler, and provide tools that put customers in control of their financial lives. Zand will also be unique in its focus on ecosystems and communities of businesses and individuals, enabling it to introduce products and services not traditionally available. Visit www.zand.ae for more information and follow us on LinkedIn.
For more information contact:
Christian Voss Pedersen
Head of Marketing, Zand
Email: Christian.pedersen@zand.ae
About Aditya Birla Group (Solfrid Investments Pte. Ltd)
Aditya Birla Group is a global conglomerate which is in the League of Fortune 500. Aditya Birla Group operates in over a dozen sectors worldwide ranging from – cement, metals, pulp and fibre, chemicals, textiles, carbon black, financial services, fashion retail, renewable energy, telecom etc. Over 50% of the Group’s USD 45 billion revenues flow from overseas operations that span 36 countries in North and South America, Africa, Europe, and Asia.
For more information contact:
Sandeep Gurumurthi
Group Head: Communication & Brand, Aditya Birla Group
Email: sandeep.gurumurthi@adityabirla.com
About Al Hail Holding LLC
Incorporated in 2006, Al Hail Holding is a leading investment company headquartered in Abu Dhabi. Al Hail Holding prides itself on a diverse portfolio across a wide category of sectors including investment & funds, financial services, healthcare, education, infrastructure, retail, real estate, communication, power & energy, technology, and security. The company has made a substantial contribution to the diversification of the UAE economy and the development of government and private sector joint initiatives.
About Al Sayyah and Sons Investments LLC
Established in 1979 Al Sayyah and Sons Investment LLC focuses on a range of investments in the construction sector and development of a group of commercial and residential buildings. They invest in the banking sector and local and international stocks. They were original investors in the leading contracting company ASGC and in the UK headquartered Innovo Holding, a company focusing on contracting, real estate, trade, technology, and financial solutions.
For more information visit www.alsayyah.com.
About Franklin Templeton
Franklin Resources, Inc. [NYSE:BEN] is a global investment management organization with subsidiaries operating as Franklin Templeton and serving clients in over 165 countries. Franklin Templeton’s mission is to help clients achieve better outcomes through investment management expertise, wealth management and technology solutions. Through its specialist investment managers, the company brings extensive capabilities in equity, fixed income, multi-asset solutions and alternatives. With offices in more than 30 countries and approximately 1,300 investment professionals, the California-based company has 75 years of investment experience and over $1.5 trillion in assets under management as of December 31, 2021. The company is underpinned by a global infrastructure with capabilities in fundamental research, investment risk management and data science.
Franklin Templeton Investments (ME) Limited, based in the Dubai International Financial Centre and regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority, has been operating in the Middle East for more than 20 years. It acts as a hub for the company’s Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa business, covering clients across 25 countries and servicing some of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, central banks, family offices and global private banks based in the Middle East. Its value proposition includes locally based investment managers, a trading desk, a centre of excellence for Shariah strategies and significant on-ground sales and service capabilities.
For more information, please visit franklinresources.com, franklintempleton.com or franklintempletonme.com and follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.
For more information contact:
Grace Wittenberg
Senior Corporate Communications Consultant, Franklin Templeton
Email: grace.wittenberg@franklintempleton.com
About Global Development Group
A diversified holding company based in Abu Dhabi. GDG has 29 years of experience with an extensive investment portfolio of successful businesses and partnerships across GCC and MENA regions. GDG’s portfolio covers a broad spectrum of industries including property development, facilities management, hospitality, food & beverage, support services, retail, construction & engineering, oil & gas, recruitment & outsourcing, transportation, general trading, PRO services, healthcare, education, energy, communication, and financial services. The company has, over the years, established a reputation for valuable partnerships built on its solid expertise across a range of business sectors.
About His Excellency Mohamed Alabbar
Founder & Managing Director of Emaar Properties, Founder & Director of Noon.com, Chairman of Eagle Hills, and Chairman of Americana Group.
Mr. Mohamed Alabbar is a global entrepreneur with active interests in real estate, retail, hospitality, e-commerce, technology, logistics, F&B and venture capital.
Since 1997, he has been at the forefront of global real estate, leading marquee real-estate development companies such as Emaar Properties (developer of world’s tallest building) and Eagle Hills (leading emerging markets real estate developer). He has spearheaded the growth of Emaar Properties attaining unmatched track record of successfully developing iconic futuristic residential, retail, entertainment, hospitality & leisure assets transforming the lifestyles of people globally. Over the years he has developed world-class mixed used projects, including his retail businesses, across 20+ markets of Middle East, North & Sub-Saharan Africa, Central & Eastern Europe and South & Southeast Asia and US.
In addition, he has driven the growth of several regional players into world-renown sector champions including Americana Group (a multibillion-dollar food business, the largest integrated food company in the Middle East) and noon.com (the leading e-commerce platform in the region). He is also shareholder in Artstreet Limited which owns interests in real estate business. He is the Chairman of Zand, one of the world’s first combined digital corporate and retail bank to launch from the UAE.
About Olivier Crespin
Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Zand. Since taking on this role in 2018 he has focused on leveraging hybrid digital banking strategies to establish Zand as the first fully digital bank in the region to combine both retail and corporate banking. Crespin brings over 20 years of extensive expertise and leadership roles in digital banking and FinTech across Latin America, the USA and Asia. He recognises the need for a customer-centric approach to humanise the banking industry. Prior to Zand, Crespin has been an award-winning leader at CIMB Bank, DBS, and Citigroup. Across those roles he’s led flagship programs into new markets including India and Indonesia and spearheaded the implementation of innovative technologies.
About Mr. Yusuff Ali M. A.
Chairman & Managing Director of Lulu Group, a retail conglomerate with an annual turnover of US$7.4 billion globally, a workforce of more than 58,000 employees comprising 47 different nationalities operating in 23 countries.
His astute business vision and strategic mind have evolved ambitious growth plans for the Group and ensured their materialization through a team of people who share his drive and dynamism.
Headquartered in Abu Dhabi, the capital of the United Arab Emirates, the group is best known in the Gulf through a chain of Lulu Hypermarkets and Shopping Malls that serve the widest segments of the multi-ethnic residents in the region.
Mr. Yusuff Ali was appointed as the Vice-Chairman of Abu Dhabi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ADCCI) in 2021. He is the only non-Arab member in the Director Board of ADCCI for a record 4 times in a row. The Director Board of ADCCI has 29 members composed of mostly Emirati chief executives and businessmen.
For more information contact:
Nandakumar
Director – Marketing & Communications, Lulu Group
Email: nandakumar@ae.lulumea.com
[1] As of December 31, 2021.
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