Bank of Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFJ has received a license to open a branch in Saudi Arabia, becoming the first Japanese bank to establish a presence in the kingdom. The bank had earlier played a key role in the Saudi government’s financing activity, helping to arrange a $10 billion loan. Earlier, its parent Mitsubishi UFJ had helped with its $17.5 billion international bond sale. Saudi Arabia and Japan have strong trading ties, with Japan’s oil and gas procurement from Saudi Aramco accounting for more than 30% of Japan’s total imports for the sector. Banking licenses in the kingdom are granted relatively infrequently. Qatar National Bank was the last foreign bank to be permitted to open a branch in September 2015. There are 13 foreign banks licenses to operate in the kingdom – five from the Gulf, two from Bahrain and one each from Kuwait, the UAE and Oman. Other international lenders include JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank and BNP Paribas as well as Asian banks like Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, State Bank of India and National Bank of Pakistan.
