Foreigners to own up to 30 per cent of First Gulf Bank shares

The Board of Directors will meet on 2nd October, 2005 to ratify the proposal for the next shareholder's Extraordinary General Meeting.

Abdulhamid Saeed CEO of FGB stated: "We were the first bank in the UAE to allow foreign participation in the banking sector. Based on the overwhelming response from foreign investors, we have decided to further open foreign ownership to 30%. The UAE is a highly attractive market for foreign investors considering the lower risk & attractive returns on investment. "

The agenda of the Board of Directors meeting includes also a review of the Bank's third quarter results. The bank reported a net profit of AED 465 million for the first half of 2005, a 357% increase over the same period in 2004. The profit increase was the highest across all UAE banks.

First Gulf Bank also increased its equity by Dh 5 billion to Dhs 7.2 billion in July 2005, making it the biggest in the UAE. With the increase in equity, First Gulf Bank will play a key role in the domestic economy by supporting major infrastructure projects in various business sectors.

The bank is focusing on expanding its operations and line of business across Treasury & Investment, Retail and Corporate banking sectors. The bank has succeeded in growing its customer base as well as introducing innovative financial services and products.