Kuwait Turkish Participation Bank (Kuveyt Turk) will treat its Bahrain branch as its Gulf headquarters after closing its operation in Dubai.
The firm, which is majority-owned by Kuwait Finance House, has relocated operations and staff to Bahrain, where it will centralise its treasury activities, according to a statement by the Bahrain Economic Development Board.
Kuveyt Turk set up a branch in Bahrain in 2002, its first overseas presence. Seven years later, in 2009, it established an entity in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC). In December of last year, the firm said it would terminate its operations in Dubai because it had not gained a commercial advantage, according to reports.
“We are pleased to welcome Kuveyt Turk Bank to Bahrain and believe it is testament to the growing ties between our two countries,” said Khalid Al Rumaihi, chief executive of the Bahrain Economic Development Board.
The Dubai branch of Kuveyt Turk was subject to an investigation by the Dubai Financial Services Authority resulting in a $150,000 penalty in 2015. The regulator “identified deficiencies and areas for improvement” in the firm’s risk management, anti-money laundering controls and corporate governance.
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