Abu Dhabi – 23 November, 2021: UAE Banks Federation (UBF), the umbrella body representing 51 banks operating in the UAE and the common unified voice for the UAE banking sector, hosted a roundtable dinner meeting with Deputy Secretary of the United States Department of the Treasury, His Excellency Wally Adeyemo, to discuss latest financial sector developments as well as wide-ranging reform measures being carried out by the UAE banking sector.
During the meeting, both parties discussed the most prominent developments related to the banking and financial sectors in the UAE and USA, as well as issues related to fraud and combatting money laundering, and explored the prospect of enhanced cooperation to address the main challenges facing the banking sector, particularly those related to the COVID-19 pandemic, strengthening joint cooperation mechanisms, and facilitating exchange of knowledge and information between the two parties.
The roundtable meeting was presided over by H.E. AbdulAziz Al-Ghurair, Chairman of UBF, and was attended - from UBF side - by Mr. Jamal Saleh, Director General of UBF, as well as the CEOs of major UBF member banks, including Mr. Abdel Fattah Sharaf, CEO of HSBC, Mr. Ahmed Abdelaal, Group CEO of Mashreq, Ms. Rola Abu Menna, CEO of Standard Chartered Bank, Ms. Elissar Antonios, CEO of Citi UAE, Mr. Bernd Van Linder, CEO of Commercial Bank of Dubai, Mr. Vince Cook, CEO of National Bank of Fujairah, and Mr. Sandeep Chauhan, Acting CEO of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank.
H.E. AbdulAziz Al-Ghurair, Chairman of UBF, said: “The UBF delegation had a most productive meeting with His Excellency Deputy Secretary Adeyemo and his U.S. Treasury team, where we discussed the latest developments in the banking and financial sector and other issues of common interest. The meeting was organized within the framework of UBF’s continuous efforts to contribute in strengthening bilateral banking relations and cooperation between the two countries in financial services and related fields, and gave an opportunity to the two parties to discuss ways to address growing global threats such as money laundering and illegal financing and contribute more effectively to building a sustainable financial system characterized by transparency and stability.”
“The roundtable discussion also provided an opportunity to the UBF delegation to update Mr. Adeyemo on the measures and solutions being adopted by UBF members to combat such activities, explain the structures and means of continuous supervision and guidance by the Central Bank of the UAE, as well as the role of UBF in enhancing compliance processes at its member banks, increasing the effectiveness of anti-money laundering systems, and following best practices to reduce risks,” H.E. AbdulAziz Al-Ghurair added.
H.E. Wally Adeyemo said: “I was glad to hear from members of the UAE Banks Federation about economic opportunities, AML/CFT compliance, and illicit finance. Open communication with the financial sector is critically important to protecting the US and international financial systems from abuse.”
