20 January 2016
Dubai: Emirates NBD, a leading bank in the region, has announced the promotion of Saod Obaidalla to Executive Vice President, Head of Private Banking, assuming overall responsibility of the bank's global private banking business.

Saod has been an integral part of Emirates NBD for over two decades in various senior roles across retail and wholesale banking. He joined the Private Banking team (PB) in 2010 to set up the Royal Accounts segment and most recently, successfully oversaw the UAE and GCC markets for PB.  

In his new role, Saod will oversee and manage relationships with the bank's HNW (high net worth) and UHNW (ultrahigh net worth) individuals and family businesses with financial assets in excess of US$1 million.

"Saod's experience and wealth expertise equip him well to lead our private banking business as we look to accelerate our strategy across the region and other markets, said Suvo Sarkar, Senior EVP & Group Head - Retail Banking & Wealth Management, Emirates NBD. "Saod will play an instrumental role in honing relationships with our key clients and strengthening the value proposition of our private banking business.  I would also like to take the opportunity to thank Michael Chahine who will be retiring at the end of March 2016 after having contributed significantly to the business since September 2011."

Commenting on his appointment, Saod Obaidalla stated: "I am honoured to lead Emirates NBD's private banking division as we continue to strengthen our wealth management proposition to private clients. With a deep insight into our client needs, and a diverse range of products and solutions, Emirates NBD PB has built a full-fledged investment advisory platform. I look forward to building on our stellar track record to manage and develop our long-standing client network."

Emirates NBD Private Banking currently has dedicated offices in Dubai, Abu Dhabi, Riyadh, London and Singapore, and is part of Emirates NBD, the leading banking group in the region and a major player in the UAE Wholesale Banking arena with strong Islamic Banking, Global Markets & Treasury, Investment Banking, Asset Management and Brokerage operations. It was recently named 'Outstanding Private Bank - Middle East' at the 2015 Private Banker International Global Wealth Awards and was also highly commended for 'Outstanding NRI/Global Indians Offering' at the awards ceremony.

-Ends-

About Emirates NBD
Emirates NBD is a leading banking Group in the region.  As at 31st December 2015, total assets were AED 406.6 Billion, (equivalent to approx. USD 110.7 Billion). The Group has a leading retail banking franchise in the UAE, with more than 220 branches and over 940 ATMs and CDMs in the UAE and overseas.  It is a major player in the UAE corporate and retail banking arena and has strong Islamic banking, Global Markets & Treasury, Investment Banking, Private Banking, Asset Management and Brokerage operations.

The Group has operations in the UAE, Egypt, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Singapore, the United Kingdom and representative offices in India, China and Indonesia.

The Group is an active participant and supporter of the UAE's main development initiatives and of the various educational, environmental, cultural, charity and community welfare establishments.

For further information, please contact:
Ibrahim Sowaidan
Head - Group Corporate Affairs
Emirates NBD
Telephone: +971 4 609 4113 / +971 50 6538937
e-mail: ibrahims@emiratesnbd.com

Tricia Rego
ASDA'A Burson-Marsteller; Dubai, UAE
Tel: 971-4-4507600; Fax: 971-4-4358040
Email: tricia.rego@bm.com

© Press Release 2016