First Abu Dhabi Bank has announced that it will open a representative office in Lagos, Nigeria, as part of its sub-Saharan expansion push.
This was disclosed on Monday at the first Investopia Africa event held in Lagos by the Group Head of Wholesale Banking at First Abu Dhabi Bank, Martin Tricaud.
Ashenews gathered through PUNCH reports that First Abu Dhabi Bank partnered with Afreximbank to provide $1.126bn in financing for the execution of Phase 1, Section 2 of the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway.
Speaking during a panel session that included the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, and the Managing Director of the Nigerian Ports Authority, Abubakar Dantsoho, the banker said, “We have a presence in 21 countries today, and very soon it will be 22, with a presence in Nigeria. This is the outcome of a long reflection and study. We were absolutely convinced that we needed a presence in sub-Saharan Africa. We have a presence in Egypt. We have a presence in Libya.
But there was an obvious gap in our geographical footprint. We looked at Africa and thought that Africa is really the future of the world economy. This is a continent growing between six per cent and eight per cent in terms of GDP every year.
“This is a population that is still growing—1.4 billion people today, but very likely to reach two billion, or at least 1.8 billion, in the next few decades. So, the opportunity is there. We reviewed several possibilities and concluded that Nigeria, and Lagos in particular, offers a great opportunity to establish our first footprint in sub-Saharan Africa. So, we will open a representative office. Hopefully, that will happen this month or next, or very, very soon.”
Tricaud added that the representative office would serve to develop the bank’s business in Nigeria, “but also to cover the entire West African region. So, in our view, this is a regional representative office that we will operate from Lagos, recognising the regional role of Lagos as a financial hub.”
Speaking on investments by the United Arab Emirates in Nigeria, Tricaud said, “The UAE is very strong in the energy sector, both conventional and renewable. So, it was very natural for us to look first at energy. Nigeria is a major oil and gas country and we have developed good relationships and done good business with a number of companies in the public and private sectors.
“That was good, but we felt there were more opportunities. You mentioned the Coastal Road, and we were absolutely delighted to work very closely with the Ministry of Finance, HITECH, and the Chagoury Group to play a meaningful role in financing the Lagos–Calabar coastal project. I visited the work site a few months ago and was very impressed with the speed of construction and the impact it will have on the local economy.”
He added that the bank works with other stakeholders to raise capital.
He stated, “We have mobilised a significant amount of capital, not on our own. There will be distribution and syndication. We have also done this with partners from the Islamic Development Bank. It shows that Nigeria can attract international capital into infrastructure. That is just the beginning, in my opinion.
“There will be much more to come in the near future, particularly in infrastructure; roads, highways and related projects.”
