AAIB eyes Takeover of Nova Scotia Bank’s Credit Portfolio in Egypt
Arab African International Bank (AAIB) plans to take over Canadian Bank of Nova Scotia’s product portfolios, consistent with the latter’s strategy to exit the Egyptian market, a high-profile banking source told Amwal Al Ghad on Saturday.
In this respect, AAIB is currently conducting due diligence to acquire the Canadian bank’s credit portfolio.
Bank of Nova Scotia’s licence to perform banking activities in Egypt’s market is non-salable; it has no right to waive it to another banking entity. Thus, the Canadian bank’s exit would stand for the cancellation of its banking licence.
Established in 1976, Scotiabank has its resident office in Egypt. However, the Canadian bank decided to end its banking services in Egypt, to be added to other 3 banks exited from the North African market following the outbreak of 2011 uprising.
In 2013, French lenders Société Générale S.A. (SocGen) and BNP Paribas have exited the Egyptian market, selling their units to Qatar National Bank (QNB) and Emirates NBD, respectively. In addition, the National Bank of Oman had given up its licence to perform banking businesses in Egypt last year.
As pursuant to Article 42 of the CBE, Banking Sector and Money Law No. 88/2003, no bank shall cease its transactions, except upon prior approval from the Board of Directors of the Central Bank. This approval shall be issued after verification that the bank has submitted adequate guarantees, or has finally cleared all obligations toward depositors, other debtors and the staff rights, according to the conditions and procedures to be issued by a decision of the Central Bank.
Scotiabank is one of North America’s premier financial institutions and Canada’s most international bank. With approximately 48,000 employees, Scotiabank Group and its affiliates serve about 10 million customers in some 50 countries around the world. In 2013, the bank recorded a net income of $6.697 billion, compared to $6.466 billion achieved throughout 2012.
Scotiabank offers a diverse range of products and services including personal, commercial, corporate and investment banking. Scotiabank operates as a full service branch in Egypt. It is specialized in corporate/ commercial loans, treasury and trade finance.
Arab African International Bank was established by Special Law as a Joint Venture between the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) and Kuwait Investment Authority (KIA), and was incorporated in 1964 as Egypt’s first Arab multinational Bank. With each party holding a 49.37% stake, the Central Bank of Egypt and the Kuwait Investment Authority are the core of AAIB’s shareholder base.
AAIB’s portfolio of credit facilities and loans stood at $3.42 billion by the end of September 2013, whilst the bank’s portfolio of deposits is estimated at $6.39 billion.
