Transaction services clients are increasingly well served in the Middle East, particularly in the UAE’s relatively large financial services industry. Local banks have improved their offering, while the biggest international banks also see it as a priority.
But it is the rise of a regional institution, Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank, that impresses most. This is evident in Euromoney’s transaction services polls, including this year’s trade finance survey, in which ADCB is the top-ranking regional institution, beating off competition from much bigger and more internationally diversified banks. The partnerships it maintains with international groups in Europe, the US and Asia help in this regard.
ADCB counted some 4,000 cash management mandates in 2016, a big increase over last year. Its cash management clients include multinational consumer goods and commodities firms, some of the biggest local companies, including real estate firms Aldar and Damac and conglomerates the Kanoo Group and Majid Al Futtaim Hypermarkets, as well as public-sector clients, including the national oil company. Transaction services are similarly a key part of what is a more nuanced and sophisticated offering at ADCB in the small and medium-sized enterprise sector than other local banks.