Frankfurt opens doors to Bahrain banks

Bahraini banks were welcomed to join the league of major US, Japanese and Swiss banks, which chose Frankfurt as the new European Financial Center in case London decided to leave the European Union. German ambassador to Bahrain, Kai Boeckmann, told top bankers in the Kingdom that Germany represents the biggest economy in Europe, and has the highest sovereign ratings (AAA), “making it a favourable setting to financial services and environment and friendly to investors from the Kingdom of Bahrain and the world.”

Ambassador Boeckmann, during an open meeting organised by Bahrain Association of Banks (BAB), emphasised his country’s keenness to reinforce cooperation with Bahrain. Boeckmann said his country is eager to benefit from Bahrain’s long-standing experience in this field, “especially in the Islamic banking industry.” Frankfurt Main Finance (FMF), Managing Director Hubertus Väth, clarified that Britain’s exit from the European Union would lead to the loss of so-called “unified business license”.

“This means that the financial products licensed by banks in Britain will not be effective in the rest of EU member states as before, as these rights are used today by about 5500 financial service providers in London,” he added. Väth was speaking about the influence of “Brexit” on the European financial scene, Bahrain and the region. “Between 700 to 800 billion euros of assets in London will be transferred to Germany after its likely withdrawal from the European Union,” Väth said.

Väth indicated that Frankfurt stock exchange includes more than 250 banks, involving about 200 international banks, pointing out that the Gulf banks’ attendance in Frankfurt stock exchange is still modest. Dr Waheed Al Qassim, Executive Chairman of Bahrain Association of Banks, said the meeting was part of the association’s keenness to learn closely about the latest development and putting Bahrain at the heart of developments resulting from Britain’s expected withdrawal from the European Union.