Barclays' foray into Saudi Arabia after 11-year pause signals strong deals flow

The deal-making pie in the Gulf region is still expanding and Barclays Bank’s re-entry into Saudi Arabia after an 11-year hiatus does not mean it trails US competitors, its president has said.

Barclays has been operating in the region for the past five decades and its latest foray into the kingdom underlines that “we are a fully relevant investment bank”, Stephen Dainton, also Barclays' head of investment bank management, told The National on the sidelines of Abu Dhabi Finance Week.

The British bank is committed to the Saudi market for the long-haul, he said. As a global non-US investment bank that is geographically diverse with a materially relevant corporate banking suit, it is also well versed with the competition. Barclays has a substantial wealth business and an investment banking practice that is global across mergers and acquisitions, as well as equities and debt capital markets, he said.

“When you think about the competitive set, there is really one firm that can compete across all those vectors against the five large US firms,” Mr Dainton said. “We think that in each of those areas, whether it's in product or geography, we have a substantial advantage that allows us to compete with those US folks.”

Barclays is investing considerable resources to grab a larger share of deals in the region. In October, the lender received a provisional licence from Saudi Arabia’s Capital Market Authority, paving the way for the bank to commence investment banking and global markets activities in the kingdom.

As part of its “broader Middle East growth strategy”, the bank also secured premises in the King Abdullah Financial District to launch its regional headquarters in Riyadh next year.

“Expanding our capabilities in the kingdom is a significant milestone for us as we continue to grow our regional footprint in key markets,” C S Venkatakrishnan, Barclays group chief executive, said at the time.

Stephen Dainton, president of Barclays Bank and Investment Bank Management, spoke of the lender's 'substantial advantage' o