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Mid East Info
12-06-2025
- Business
- Mid East Info
Emirates NBD wins record eight awards at Euromoney Awards for Excellence 2025 - Middle East Business News and Information
Bank wins five regional awards including 'Middle East's Best Bank 2025' showcasing a landmark year of strategic expansion, digital leadership and financial performance • Winner of three UAE awards including 'UAE's Best Bank', 'UAE's Best Bank for ESG' and 'UAE's Best Investment Bank for Equity Capital Markets (ECM)' Dubai, United Arab Emirates,June 2025: Emirates NBD, a leading banking group in the Middle East, North Africa and Türkiye (MENAT) region, is celebrating its success at the Euromoney Middle East Awards for Excellence 2025 with eight new wins. Surpassing its 2024 performance at the awards, Emirates NBD has won five regional awards including the 'Middle East's Best Bank'. Recording exceptional financial performance in 2024, Emirates NBD announced net profit of AED 23 billion, up 7%, while credit showed standout growth. Emirates NBD's international operations now account for 31% of total income, reflecting the success of its expansion strategy across the GCC, Asia and Europe. Emirates NBD was also a pioneer in sustainable finance innovation, winning the titles of 'Middle East's Best Bank for ESG' and 'Middle East's Best ESG Deal 2025'. In 2024, the bank issued the world's first sustainability-linked loan financing bond aligned with the updated International Capital Market Association (ICMA) and Loan Market Association (LMA) guidelines, raising USD 500 million. Launching its first sustainable fixed deposit, the bank attracted USD 100 million in inflows. Emirates NBD Capital, the global investment bank for Emirates NBD Group, facilitated more than USD 34 billion in sustainable finance during the year – ranking as a top 12 global coordinator of emerging market ESG-labelled bonds. With an 11% revenue increase from the SME segment, the bank's performance reflected its deep commitment to entrepreneurship, economic diversification and digital innovation, earning the accolade of 'Middle East's Best Bank for SMEs' at the awards. Digitisation continued to underpin Emirates NBD's SME strategy. In 2024, approximately 80% of Emirate NBD's SME accounts were opened digitally, supported by the bank's end-to-end digital customer onboarding journey. Emirates NBD also won the award for the 'Middle East's Best Bank for Customer Experience', having undertaken a comprehensive customer experience transformation over the past 18 months, embedding it across every level of its operations, governance, culture and technology infrastructure, to improve every major customer touchpoint. In parallel, Emirates NBD achieved resounding success at the national level with three awards for 'UAE's Best Bank', 'UAE's Best Bank for ESG' and 'UAE's Best Investment Bank for Equity Capital Markets (ECM) 2025', showcasing asset growth year-on-year of 16% with the bank registering a significant AED 160 billion (USD 43.6 billion) in new loans and maintaining a one-third market share of UAE credit cards. The bank's investment banking arm, Emirates NBD Capital, dominated UAE IPOs, advising on prominent ECM transactions such as the largest grocery retail IPO in MENA for Lulu Retail and the Spinneys IPO, helping attract strong investor demand from various investor categories. Emirates NBD's substantial contributions to sustainable finance were exemplified by its mobilisation of over USD 34.3 billion in sustainable finance, placing it among the top global coordinators for emerging market ESG bonds. Shayne Nelson, Group Chief Executive Officer at Emirates NBD, commented: 'We are delighted to win eight awards this year at the Euromoney Awards for Excellence. Emirates NBD continues to perform and transform as one of the UAE's largest banks and the most profitable financial institution in the region. Through the transition, we endeavour to build deeper connections with our customers by providing immersive experiences. This association, along with our commitment to sustainability, brings deeper loyalty at a time when ESG-centred choices are becoming the norm. As a homegrown financial institution, Emirates NBD prides itself on offering customers unparalleled financial solutions, strengthening our leadership in banking innovation in the country and the region.' The prestigious recognition at the Euromoney Middle East Award for Excellence 2025 is the latest in a series of accolades received by the bank. Emirates NBD was awarded 'Middle East's Best Bank for SMEs', 'UAE's Best Bank for SMEs', 'UAE's Best Bank for Corporates', and 'Middle East's Best Bank for Wealth Management' at the 2024 edition of the Euromoney Awards for Excellence. The bank was also lauded at the 2024 awards by The Banker, namely 'Bank of the Year in the UAE 2024' and 'Best Private Bank in the UAE'. About Emirates NBD: Emirates NBD (DFM: Emirates NBD) is a leading banking group in the MENAT (Middle East, North Africa and Türkiye) region with a presence in 13 countries, serving over 9 million active customers. As of 31st March 2025, total assets were AED 1 trillion, (equivalent to approx. USD 272 billion). The Group has operations in the UAE, Egypt, India, Türkiye, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Singapore, the United Kingdom, Austria, Germany, Russia and Bahrain and representative offices in China and Indonesia with a total of 839 branches and 4,539 ATMs / SDMs. Emirates NBD is the leading financial services brand in the UAE with a Brand value of USD 4.54 billion. Emirates NBD Group serves its customers (individuals, businesses, governments, and institutions) and helps them realise their financial objectives through a range of banking products and services including retail banking, corporate and institutional banking, Islamic banking, investment banking, private banking, asset management, global markets and treasury, and brokerage operations. The Group is a key participant in the global digital banking industry with 97% of all financial transactions and requests conducted outside of its branches. The Group also operates Liv, the lifestyle digital bank by Emirates NBD, with close to half a million users, it continues to be the fastest-growing bank in the region. Emirates NBD contributes to the construction of a sustainable future as an active participant and supporter of the UAE's main development and sustainability initiatives, including financial wellness and the inclusion of people of determination. Emirates NBD is committed to supporting the UAE's Year of Sustainability as Principal Banking Partner of COP28 and an early supporter to the Dubai Can sustainability initiative, a city-wide initiative aimed to reduce use of single-use plastic bottled water.
Indianapolis Star
10-06-2025
- Automotive
- Indianapolis Star
ECM Announces PrintStator v8.3, Providing Innovators with the ‘World's Fastest Motor Design Platform'
NEEDHAM, MA / ACCESS Newswire ECM PCB Stator Tech has announced PrintStator v8.3, a major update to its award-winning Motor CAD platform. The new version enables electromagnetic motor designs and optimized datasheets in just seconds-now with automated 'smart' design validation and feedback. It's a game-changing leap in speed and interactivity for advanced motor development powered by ECM's patented PCB Stator technology. 'We're putting the most powerful motor design tool I've ever seen directly into the hands of innovators and engineers, ' said ECM CEO Brian Casey. 'This isn't just about speed-it's about redefining how, where, and how quickly electric motors can be designed and brought to life. At ECM, we're obsessed with continuous improvement and technological advancement. v8.3 is a major leap-but it's far from the finish line. We'll continue pushing the boundaries of what's possible with this best available motor technology.' From Award-Winning Beta to Real-World Adoption 2024 was a breakout year for ECM. After releasing the beta version of PrintStator, the software earned recognition from leading technology and engineering institutions-taking home awards from Automate, SXSW, CES, Design World and more. More importantly, ECM's technology began powering real commercial products, including a new direct-drive racing wheel designed in partnership with Thrustmaster -proving that PrintStator isn't just disruptive in theory, but in-market. ECM Engineers Interfacing with PrintStator What's New in PrintStator v8.3 The latest update introduces a suite of backend and usability improvements: 100x Faster Optimization – Electromagnetic simulations and motor performance datasheet generation now complete in as little as 1-2 seconds, presenting a 100x magnitude speed improvement that enables near real-time iteration and dramatically accelerates motor design workflows. From Simulation to Housing in Hours – Engineers can now move directly from optimized motor outputs to mechanical integration. PrintStator v8.3 automatically generates parametric models and CAM- and CAD-ready housing designs-cutting mechanical handoff times from weeks to hours. JSON-Based Optimizer Output – Optimization results are now delivered in a clean, machine-readable .json format-making it easier to integrate with external CNC tools, CAD workflows, and automated manufacturing systems. Enhanced Flux-in-the-Gap Modeling – Improved magnetic flux calculations within the motor air gap boost simulation accuracy without compromising speed. This update leverages robust parallelization techniques to increase model fidelity while maintaining near real-time compute performance. Global Production with Gerber Output – While not new to v8.3, PrintStator continues to support direct Gerber file export-enabling flexible, regionalized manufacturing through any global PCB fabrication house. This enables flexible, tariff-mitigating production through regionalized or onshore manufacturing. Early Work on AI Design Assistant – Development is underway on a generative, AI-guided motor design assistant-aimed at further accelerating concept iteration by building on ECM's existing constraint-driven design language. ECM's PrintStator software generates Gerber files that can be sent directly to PCB manufacturers for immediate production-resulting in fully optimized motor solutions. Looking Ahead: ECM's Roadmap Frontend Overhaul & Custom API Development With backend speed now at 'miracle mode,' ECM's software team is focused on a complete frontend overhaul-developing a more intuitive UI and a custom API that will give users greater control over the optimization process and enable future integration with industry-leading CAD/CAM SaaS platforms. 'We're redesigning the front-end experience to match the power of what's under the hood,' said Casey. 'When leading engineers can design PCB Stator motors directly inside their CAD environment, we'll unlock an entirely new level of technology adoption on a global scale.' Enabling Vertical Integration, Reshoring & Tariff Mitigation As PrintStator adoption grows, ECM is helping OEMs vertically integrate motor design and production-eliminating winding lines, reducing reliance on specialized labor, and enabling motors to be manufactured anywhere PCB fabs exist. This unlocks geographic flexibility, supports onshoring/reshoring strategies, and helps partners mitigate tariffs by building motors closer to point of use. Partner Enablement at Every Stage With this latest software update, ECM continues to support both new and existing partners in launching custom motor development projects using the PrintStator platform-from initial prototyping to global production. Alpha and Beta Software access for select partners is slated for release later this year, further expanding collaboration and design velocity across industries. 'We have clear visibility through partner engagements into a future where leading enterprises are vertically integrating their motor supply chains and disrupting legacy models. With major OEMs and new entrants adopting ECM's software and patented technology, we're not just powering innovation-we're enabling the franchising of next-generation motor OEMs. ECM is catalyzing a true paradigm shift in how electric motors are developed, sourced, and scaled,' Casey added. 'In 2025, ECM is already seeing adoption from global leaders in robotics, consumer appliances, haptics, gaming, HVAC, and pump manufacturing-all leveraging PrintStator at serious scale.' About ECM PCB Stator Tech ECM PCB Stator Tech delivers the only full-stack platform for electric motor innovation-empowering partners to design, prototype, and optimize next-generation PCB Stator motors with unprecedented precision and speed. With PrintStator Motor CAD and patented axial flux hardware, ECM enables the development of compact, efficient, and quiet motors that: Learn more about ECM's PCB Stator solutions and PrintStator Motor CAD platform at and in these videos: 'How Does a PCB Stator Work?' and ' A New Way to Build Motors Without Winding Lines ' Contact Information Sam Jones Director of Marketing and Communications sjones@ or explore PrintStator View the original press release on ACCESS Newswire
Arabian Post
10-06-2025
- Business
- Arabian Post
Arqaam Capital Intensifies ECM and DCM Push Amid Gulf Deal Boom
Arqaam Capital is stepping up its equity capital markets, debt capital markets, and loan syndication operations in response to an upswing in transaction volume across Saudi Arabia and the UAE, positioning itself as a more prominent regional player. The Dubai‑based financial services firm, with licenced offices in the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Lebanon, has secured permissions in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to advise on ECM mandates. Rawad Kassouf, Head of ECM Execution & Syndicate, noted that the Saudi team is undergoing expansion and actively leveraging a 27‑strong research analyst base to deepen research capabilities and strengthen regional and international distribution for issuers. Arqaam, originally a sales and trading brokerage, entered the ECM arena by managing the Dubai Holding REIT as a joint bookrunner. Kassouf, who joined from ADCB in August 2024 to spearhead ECM expansion, said, 'We're getting deals from the UAE, Saudi Arabia and Oman, and we expect to advise on more ECM transactions by year end'. He anticipates increasing activity in Saudi listings, particularly from industrial and real estate sectors driven by large family-owned businesses seeking to list on Tadawul. ADVERTISEMENT Expansion across the debt-markets is being led by Omar Musharraf, newly appointed Managing Director of Debt Solutions and DCM. Musharraf joined less than two months ago from Oman Investment Bank, where he headed structured finance and DCM. At Arqaam, he is tasked with growing the debt platform by anchoring flow business in DCM and loan syndications, as well as higher‑margin structured finance and private credit. GCC debt capital markets had outstanding debt exceeding US$1 trillion by end‑Q1 2025, rising 10 % year‑on‑year, with quarterly issuance hitting US$89 billion—a modest 3 % year‑on‑year decline despite quarterly growth. Musharraf remarked on the sophistication of issuances and tighter pricing, increasing competition and compressing fees: 'Value creation now hinges on structuring complexity and execution'. By year‑end, Musharraf expects a full debt solutions strategy supported by new fixed‑income analysts added to the research team. Arqaam has already supported key transactions, such as the Sobha deal, and is involved in several additional corporate, financial institution, and sovereign debt transactions, also evaluating private credit opportunities. The firm is staging its DCM expansion prudently, targeting high‑quality credit issuers—government‑linked entities or private sector firms aligned with regional priorities, including oil and gas. It is also aiming to tap deeper into sukuk markets and Additional Tier 1 issuances across Saudi and the UAE. New regulatory standards are catching attention: AAOIFI's Standard 62 introduces potential complexities to sukuk issuance, prompting careful monitoring by Arqaam. ADVERTISEMENT Forecasts indicate around US$35 billion of debt refinancing across the GCC in 2025–26, driven by sovereign and corporate maturities as well as infrastructure financing and economic diversification strategies. Musharraf commented, 'Debt refinancing alone will keep us active, with a significant volume of sovereign, corporate and FI maturities on the horizon,' alongside new issuances from regional and global players. Kassouf highlights Oman as a potential growth market: an upgrade from frontier to emerging market status—possibly scheduled for next year—could attract increased foreign direct investment, re‑ratings and valuation boosts. Despite the growth trajectory, both ECM and DCM businesses face pressures. Kassouf points to 'tight fees and stiff competition,' especially in post-launch aftermarket performance, which requires a delicate equilibrium between issuer objectives and investor returns. Musharraf echoes this sentiment, acknowledging fee compression and the escalating demand for intricate structuring. Arqaam is taking a strategic approach in response. The firm is intensifying recruitment across ECM and DCM, enhancing its research infrastructure to include fixed-income analysts and emphasising structuring capabilities that justify its advisory fees. This expansion is underpinned by strong macroeconomic fundamentals in the Gulf region. Saudi Arabia—responsible for 45.1 % of GCC DCM outstanding—and the UAE, with Qatar, are at the forefront. ECM activity is gaining momentum, with growing participation from real estate conglomerates looking to diversify via public listings. Government‑related entities are expected to fuel much of the pipeline in Q3 and Q4, though privately owned firms are increasingly opining on listing possibilities. Oman's evolving market classification adds another source of upside, potentially drawing new players and capital. Looking ahead, Arqaam Capital seems poised to navigate the complexities of Gulf capital markets with a reinforced advisory model, deeper research backing, and a dual‑track strategy across ECM and DCM. The firm is strategically augmenting its teams, refining product offerings, and tracking regulatory and market shifts to capitalise on Gulf investment flows while standing firm against competitive and pricing headwinds.
Zawya
10-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Arqaam Capital strengthens IB drive as deals surge in Saudi, UAE
Initially set up as a sales and trading brokerage, Arqaam Capital is now accelerating its ECM, DCM, and loan syndication efforts as deal flow rises in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. But the expansion isn't without challenges, including tight fees and stiff competition. Headquartered in Dubai's DIFC and with offices in UAE, Saudi, Egypt and Lebanon, the financial services firm secured licenses in Saudi that would enable them to advice on ECM mandates. Rawad Kassouf, Head of ECM Execution & Syndicate at Arqaam told Zawya that the firm is expanding the Saudi team and currently busy leveraging its team of 27 research analysts to maximise research capabilities as well as regional and international distribution for issuers. Arqaam was a joint book runner for Dubai Holding REIT. 'We're getting deals from the UAE, Saudi Arabia, and Oman, and we expect to advise on more ECM transactions by year end,' said Kassouf, who was a senior investment banker at ADCB before joining Arqaam to expand its ECM division in August last year. While Saudi Arabia and the UAE are at the center of capital markets activity, Kassouf said Oman's potential upgrade from frontier to emerging market status—possibly next year—could lead to increased FDI inflows and re-ratings that may boost valuations re-ratings. Saudi Arabia is set to maintain its leadership in ECM this year, driven primarily by industrial listings, with real estate following closely. 'The large families in the kingdom who have huge real estate arms are all considering to list. There is a scarcity of these kind of companies on Tadawul. When it comes to aftermarket performance of recent issuances bankers need to strike a healthy balance between issuer and investor expectations. We should be able to manage it in upcoming IPOs,' Kassouf said. 'We are going to see a busy Q3, Q4 in KSA and UAE. Most initiatives will be driven by government related entities, but we are seeing more and more privately owned companies considering listing.' DCM business roadmap Omar Musharraf, Managing Director of Debt solutions and DCM at Arqaam Capital joined the firm barely two months back. Previously, he was head of structured finance and DCM at Oman Investment Bank. 'At Arqaam, I've been mandated to establish and scale the debt platform, anchoring the flow business through DCM and Loan Syndications on one side, and higher-margin segments of Structured Finance and Private Credit on the other,' Musharraf said. The size of the GCC DCM passed $1 trillion outstanding (all currencies) at end-1Q25, up 10% year on year (yoy). Total DCM issuance in Q1 2025 grew by 11% over the quarter to $89 billion but was down 3% yoy. Saudi Arabia has the largest share of DCM outstanding (45.1%), followed by the UAE (29.9%) and Qatar (13%). The regional debt capital markets remained active even as global markets stumbled amid concerns over Trump's tariff announcements. 'Issuances have become noticeably more sophisticated. Issuers are now exploring various options and tightening pricing as well. All attention is focused on the Middle East,' he noted. 'Competition is intense, fees are compressed, and value creation now hinges on structuring complexity and execution.' Musharraf is currently focused on building up a team and will add fixed income analysts to the research team. 'By year-end, we should have a comprehensive debt solutions strategy in place. A key part of that is expanding our research coverage – currently equity-focused – to include fixed income analysts,' he added. In the meantime, Arqaam is doing everything possible for more visibility. 'We supported the Sobha transaction and are currently working on several additional deals, across corporates, financial institutions, and international sovereigns, while also evaluating a pipeline of private credit opportunities. It's a busy time,' Musharraf said. While the DCM business will start at a modest scale or benchmark size, it is targeting high-quality credit, either government-linked or private sector issuers that naturally align with the country's priorities, such as oil and gas. It is also training its sights on tapping into the broader sukuk market and AT1 issuances in Saudi Arabia and the UAE. 'Sukuk markets remain strong on both the demand and supply side. The traditional barriers such as complexity, cost, and timing have narrowed materially, making sukuk a far more competitive option. That said, AAOIFI's new Standard 62 could introduce fresh complications. We're watching that closely,' he said. There is approximately $35 billion in debt refinancing expected across the GCC region during 2025–2026. This refinancing is driven by maturing sovereign and corporate debt, as well as ongoing economic diversification efforts and infrastructure financing. 'Debt refinancing alone will keep us active, with a significant volume of sovereign, corporate and FI maturities on the horizon. Add to those new issuances from both regional and emerging global players, and there's a considerable amount of market activity ahead and no shortage of market action,' he added.
Zawya
09-06-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Can HSBC shrink its investment bank to greatness?
HSBC's exit from ECM and M&A in Western markets wasn't a surprise. The bank said its activities in those markets cost it around US$300m a year and were not materially profitable. So a straightforward decision, right? Not necessarily. Investment banks, more than any part of a bank, are people businesses in which the assets have legs and can walk out the door. Employees also often have inflated egos and are usually convinced that business comes to the bank because of them – not the other way around. In recent weeks, three senior global heads have departed to competitors – Kamal Jabre (head of M&A), Ed Sankey (head of ECM) and Dan Bailey (head of TMT investment banking). More are likely to go, and players like HSBC in the middle of a restructuring often find themselves having to pay a premium to keep their best talent. When HSBC announced the shrinking of its ECM and M&A businesses it didn't mention research and many at the bank suggested it remained committed to global coverage. That seemed very strange as research is typically a heavily loss-making business subsidised by investment banking. Moreover, in Europe and the US, HSBC has a weak franchise in research. Unsurprisingly, then, HSBC has since confirmed it is concentrating its research in line with the geographical refocus of its ECM and M&A footprint. As well as focusing its equity research efforts on Asia-Pacific and Middle East stocks, there are suggestions that remaining London-based analysts will cover global multinationals heavily exposed to these regions. Shrink to fit? Shrinking an investment bank is difficult. In most cases the really hard bit is exiting balance sheet-heavy businesses with the challenge of unwinding legacy positions such as long-dated derivatives. We saw with Credit Suisse how, when done badly, it can exacerbate a death spiral. But Credit Suisse also gives us a case study in dis-synergies from exiting business lines. When the bank lost US$5bn in the Archegos Capital Management debacle, the bank's reaction was to exit the prime brokerage space. This put even more pressure on the economics of Credit Suisse's equities business, accelerating its market share losses in equity trading with the key hedge fund client base. When shareholder Ping An Asset Management had suggested several years earlier that HSBC split itself up, the bank highlighted that the core of the Asian business was a global network. Former CEO Noel Quinn said when announcing second-half 2022 results that the bank had 'a 20% wallet share of wholesale banking client business from Europe, the Middle East and the Americas into Asia' and that '45% of our wholesale client business is booked cross-border and a large proportion of the revenues booked domestically for wholesale clients comes to us because of the business we do for those clients overseas, and we will continue to grow that number'. In other words, we're in Europe and the US in large part because of the money we can make serving clients in those regions doing business in Asia and the Middle East. Will it work? So will that work with the new strategic refocus? The centre of HSBC's wholesale business is cross-border payments, lending and FX, not ECM and M&A, but the departure of senior global rainmakers makes you wonder about potential dis-synergies, such as losing the ability to compete in large cross-border transactions such as a Middle East or Asia business looking for Western private equity or corporate buyers or helping a Middle East or Asia business looking to IPO in London or New York. Will the new model have the C-suite and boardroom connectivity for the former or the distribution to European and US institutional investors for the latter? If HSBC is no longer seen as being able to compete in cross-border ECM and M&A, will it be stuck competing to be the local investment bank in deal mandates against Indian, Chinese and Middle Eastern banks? This is a pretty crowded space. HSBC is not a top 10 player in ECM or M&A in Asia-Pacific or in major markets like China and India, although it is certainly a market leader in the Middle East. Skewered? HSBC has committed to a global footprint in DCM that ties into its global corporate transaction banking and lending footprint. DCM also tends to focus on CFOs and corporate treasurers while ECM and M&A relationships are more focused on boardrooms and CEOs. But the geographical skew of HSBC's DCM franchise is at odds with the bank's overall geographic strengths. According to LSEG fee statistics, HSBC's global DCM ranking has been steady between nine and 11 over the last six years, depending on the mix of issuers. And yet the majority of its DCM revenues come from Europe and the US with a top five or six position in Europe and even higher in the UK. Non-US banks typically have strong DCM franchises in their home markets where they offer a full service investment bank. The bulk of HSBC's wholesale banking franchise is insulated from shrinking its investment bank. But a major talent drain leading to a negative feedback loop in its remaining ECM and M&A footprint or its global DCM business could still be costly. Moreover, a firm that loses advisory business, primary and secondary share sales and bond mandates will see a knock-on effect to trading franchises in cash equities, equity derivatives, credit and interest rate swaps. In trying to shrink to greatness, HSBC must be careful not to shrink into irrelevance. Rupak Ghose is a former financials research analyst
