British Banks in the UAE

The UAE has highly very competitive banking sector. There are 26 local banks operating in the market. Although top five local banks dominate the state’s banking sector (including Emirates NBD, National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, First Gulf Bank and Dubai Islamic Bank), dozens of foreign banks have established their branches in the UAE and especially in Dubai, the financial heart of the country.

Great Britain is a country known worldwide for the reliability of its banks. Most internationally recognized UK banks including Standard Chartered, HSBC and Lloyds. These British banks are represented in the UAE. Though the services of the British banks are rather pricy, having an account in one of them is very good for the image of a company. Let us have a closer look at the list of British banks in the UAE and Dubai in particular.

HSBC is the biggest UK bank represented at the UAE financial market. It offers a wide range of services including savings accounts, deposits, credit financing and mortgages. It works with both personal / individual and corporate clients. HSBC started operating in the UAE in 1946 under the name of the “British Bank of Iran and the Middle East.” When it left the market in Iran, it was renamed into the “British Bank of the Middle East.” In 1959 it was purchased by the Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation. Thus, it is now known as HSBC Bank Middle East. This bank is widely recognized in the region and in the UAE in particular and has branches in Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Saudi Arabia, Beirut and Amman.

Standard Chartered Bank is an international bank operating at the markets of Asia, Africa, the Middle East and Latin America founded about 150 years ago under the name of “Standard Bank of British South Africa and Chartered Bank of India, Australia and China.” The bank has more than 1,700 offices in more than 70 countries of the world. The UAE is no exception – this British bank established its branch in the UAE and Dubai, in particular, in 1958. The first branch of Standard Chartered appeared in Sharjah. This UK bank has been operating in the UAE market for more than 50 years. Therefore, it has the most developed branch network. Standard Chartered has become one of the leading foreign banks in the UAE. It is well known for its reliability and efficiency and serves both local and foreign business, small companies and large corporations.

Another famous international British bank, Lloyds, has sold its assets to HSBC and left the market of the UAE.

British banks in the UAE offer the same range of services as the local ones: Internet banking, credit and debit cards, a variety of accounts including savings account, etc. They are known all over the world for their efficiency and reliability. Some of them have been already operating for more than 300 years. Though the UAE banking sector is dominated by top five local banks, more than 20 foreign banks have established their branches here. British banks are no exception.

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