Turkey Islamic lender receives a license from Central Bank of Bahrain

MANAMA

The Central Bank of Bahrain has granted a license to Turkish Islamic lender Turkey Finans to open a branch in Bahrain, the bank said in a written statement on March 4.

“The proposed branch is expected to contribute to strengthening its relationship with the Gulf region. It therefore targets to engage with existing and potential investors. Special focus will be given to financial institutions, government agencies, corporate customers and high net worth individuals,” said the statement.

The Bahrain office will be the first branch of the bank outside Turkey. The bank is regulated by Turkey’s banking watchdog, the BDDK.

The bank was formally founded in 1991 by a group of entrepreneurs and then merged with other groups under the name “Türkiye Finans.” The majority of the bank is owned by the National Commercial Bank (NCB) of Saudi Arabia.