Maktoum bin Mohammed meets with the Chairman and CEO of Eldridge Industries

His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, First Deputy Ruler of Dubai, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, met today with George Al Hudayri, CEO of HSBC International Group, one of the largest financial and banking services institutions in the world.

His Highness praised the close and fruitful cooperation relations that have always brought together the UAE and the leading international banking group, which date back to the 1940s, specifically to the year 1946, with the opening of the group’s first branch in the Emirate of Dubai, where the cooperation relations between the two sides witnessed a remarkable development over more than 80 years.

The meeting, which was held in the Dubai International Financial Centre, discussed the significant development witnessed by the financial sector in the UAE as it enters a new phase of growth, driven by strategic partnerships with leading global institutions in this field, as well as the impact of adopting innovation, the elements of digital integration and advanced technologies as means to support this development.

The strengths that the country enjoys were discussed, especially in terms of infrastructure, adopting and activating good governance standards, business-enabling regulations and services, and their impact in providing a fertile environment for financial and banking institutions from around the world to expand their business in the region’s markets with all the promising opportunities they hold.

The operations of the leading global banking group in the region were also reviewed, and the group’s plans to expand therein and ways to benefit from the great supportive advantages that Dubai provides in this regard in light of the increasing opportunities accompanying its growing position as a leading global financial center.
During the meeting, His Highness Sheikh Maktoum bin Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum stressed that Dubai’s position as a major attractive destination for investments and major international financial institutions is the result of a dynamic, reliable and stimulating environment for financial innovation. His Highness noted Dubai’s keenness to expand the scope of effective partnerships with leading international banks in light of its long-term vision to build a financial environment with highly competitive advantages, enjoys flexibility and stimulates growth, in line with the objectives of the Dubai Economic Agenda D33. The aim is to double the city’s gross domestic product and place it among the top three urban economies in the world and the top four global financial centers by 2033.

The meeting was attended by Mohammed bin Hadi Al Husseini, Minister of State for Financial Affairs, Helal Saeed Al Marri, Director General of the Department of Economy and Tourism in Dubai, and Issa Kazim, Governor of the Dubai International Financial Centre.