Dubai-Citi Treasury and Trade Solutions (TTS), a leading provider of cash management and trade services in the region, recently hosted a client seminar entitled The Middle East – Africa Expanding Corridor: Understanding the Potential and Capitalizing on the Growth focusing on Citi’s unique footprint and transaction services capabilities across the Middle East and Africa.
Held at the Palace Hotel in Dubai, the client seminar featured a number of multinational clients as well as local companies expanding in the region through regional headquarters in Dubai. Citi speakers provided an economic update on the African continent and presented the bank’s comprehensive trade and transaction services capabilities, including trade services, treasury, FX and cash management.
“We are noticing the rising trend of multinational corporations setting up in the United Arab Emirates to manage their business across the Middle East, Africa and beyond,” said Emre Karter, TTS regional head for Middle East, North Africa, Turkey and Pakistan.
“This seminar mirrors Dubai’s vision to serve as hub for Africa by helping our clients to execute their Africa strategy, and putting Citi’s Middle East and Africa network along with UAE hub capabilities at their service as they embark on an expansion path.”
TTS has an extensive footprint in the Middle East and Africa with a presence in 23 countries managed out of two regional hubs: the UAE supporting the Middle East, North Africa, Pakistan and Turkey, and South Africa, serving Sub Saharan Africa.
Citi’s network serves more than 1,500 multinational clients across the wider Middle East and Africa region, and offers a wide range of transaction services, treasury, corporate finance, investment banking and research capabilities. Citi also has a network of trusted partner banks to support clients in non-presence countries, delivering turnkey cash management solutions.
In 2014, Citi launched the Middle East chapter of its Shared Service Centre for clients in UAE centralizsing regional functions out of Dubai, while, most recently, the bank created a Regional Relationship Management Unit serving as a single point of contact and gateway for its clients in the Middle East, Africa and beyond.
“We continue to multiply our efforts to support multinational corporations with regional headquarters in the UAE as our clients look to participate in the African growth story,” said Peter Crawley, Citi’s treasury and trade solutions head for Sub-Saharan Africa.
“With our African presence in 15 countries, which account for around 77 per cent of Africa’s economic activity, spanning all four diverse sub-regions, we are uniquely placed to help our clients grow.”
As a testament to its transaction capabilities across the Middle East and Africa, Citi was recently recognised as the Best Bank in Cash and Liquidity Management for the Middle East & North Africa and Best Bank for Cash and Liquidity Management in Sub-Saharan Africa by Treasury Management International Awards for Innovation and Excellence.