The banking sector in the Middle East has experienced several years of good fortune on the back of healthy economic growth, driven by the oil, gas and other industries, foreign investment, rapid population increases and sound government planning. 

Nearly three years after the start of the “Arab Spring”, many countries are still feeling the political, social, and economic knock-on effects. But banks have weathered the storm well. 

According to the The Banker’s “Top 1000 World Banks 2013”, the 92 Middle East banks in the rankings increased their Tier 1 capital by 7.9% over the previous year, and today account for a 3.7% share of the global Tier 1 capital represented by the 1000 banks in the tables. 

The UAE Banks Federation, in association with FT Live and The Banker, presents the Middle East Banking Forum, a full-day event highlighting the big issues facing the sector. Senior executives from a variety of banks and other financial services firms will outline their successes and comment on further potential, but also warn of the dangers that lie ahead. 

The key topic to be discussed will be prospects for banks in the Middle East in the aftermath of the Arab spring and at a time of subdued global economic growth. Other discussion points will be the UAE’s progress as a regional financial hub, the provision of retail banking services to the region’s rising numbers of middle classes as well as to the financially excluded, Islamic banking, corporate mergers & acquisitions, corporate banking, and cross-border expansion. Please click here for more details