Bank of Beirut, one of the ten largest banks in Lebanon, said Monday that it would open a representative office in Dubai soon to provide banking services for the large Lebanese community and Lebanese-owned companies in the United Arab Emirates, reported the Daily Star newspaper on Tuesday.
The bank said in a statement that the “Central Bank of Lebanon and the UAE Central Bank approved the bank’s request to open an office in the emirate.”
“This step aims at strengthening the bank’s presence in the UAE and in the Gulf,” the statement said, adding that the move reflects the existing strong ties between the bank and other institutions, particularly Emirates Bank International, which owns 10 percent of the Lebanese bank.
A Bank of Beirut official said that the representative office will offer different banking services to the Lebanese, such as loans to buy houses in Lebanon.
More than 60,000 Lebanese currently live in the UAE, according to the paper.
Banque Libanaise pour le Commerce is currently the only Lebanese bank in the UAE, having four branches there.
Bank of Beirut will be the first Lebanese bank to open a representative office in the UAE, said the paper -- Albawaba.com
