The Chairman of the National Commercial Bank of Saudi Arabia, Ammar Al-Khudairi, the largest lender in the kingdom, stated today, Wednesday, that the bank is not currently considering any international opportunities.
Al-Khudairi indicated that the bank, which acquired nearly ten percent of Credit Suisse's shares last year, is currently focusing on expanding its operations within Saudi Arabia.
In an interview with Reuters on the sidelines of the Financial Sector Conference in the Saudi capital Riyadh, he said, "If there has been anything in the past twelve months, the Saudi market is one of the most exciting markets. There is a lot to do here to maximize the benefits from our strong economy."
Al-Khudairi mentioned that the bank aims to increase its coverage of retail stores across the kingdom and to deploy capital throughout the country in both the private sector and the giant projects currently being undertaken by the government.
He noted that "there has been a slowdown in the past two months as some issuers (of public offerings) are skeptical about valuations and want to wait to see if markets will adjust to the situation."
He added, "What I can say is that the waiting list is very strong, and with somewhat favorable market conditions, Saudi Arabia will be one of the top two or three countries in the world in terms of initial public offerings. I have no doubt about that."
The bank announced a nearly 47% increase in its net profit in 2022, supported by a rise in its operating revenues and a decrease in obstacles, as the Saudi economy recovered from COVID-19 to register an 8.7% growth in GDP last year.
