Standard Chartered Plc is beefing up its private banking team in the UAE by 20% with new hires as it jostles with other global banks to serve the growing pool of the super-rich who are moving here from across the world.

The lender hired seven new bankers, all reporting to Nash Mithani, market head, private banking, UAE, and head, Global South Asia Community (GSAC).

They include Momin Jaffar, who joins as managing director and group head.

“The UAE continues to be a priority market for Standard Chartered, with the bank actively investing in talent and resources to meet the needs of its high and ultra-high-net-worth clients. This latest expansion reflects the bank’s strategy to remain at the forefront of private banking, leveraging its global network and local expertise to provide unparalleled services to this growing client segment,” said Vinay Gandhi, the global head of GSAC and regional head of AMEE, at Standard Chartered Global Private Bank.

Other international lenders, including JP Morgan Chase and Santander, have been reinforcing their private banking teams in the UAE as Dubai and Abu Dhabi have emerged as top destinations for the world’s super weathy. DHF Capital S.A said a record 6,700 millionaires are expected to call the UAE home by the end of 2024; twice as many as in the US or Singapore.

The UAE billionaires’ aggregate wealth rose by nearly 405 to $138.7 billion, with the number of billionaires growing to 18 in 2024, UBS said in a recent report.

StanChart said the new hiring aligns with its ambition to build up capabilities to support the needs of high and ultra-high net worth (HNW and UHNW) clients.

Source: Zawya