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Nicholas Palaci
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. is opening an office in Abu Dhabi, marking a major step for the U.S. bank, which has been snubbed in the United Arab Emirates over its involvement in the 1MDB scandal.
A new outpost for Goldman Sachs will open in the Abu Dhabi Global Market, pending final approval from regulators, according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg. According to the memo, the office will add to the bank’s centers in Dubai, Doha and Riyadh and enable it to deepen relationships with clients.
Bank representatives confirmed the contents of the memo.
Goldman has been the bank of choice for many of Abu Dhabi’s top dealmakers, but the fallout from the 1MDB corruption scandal has marked its sudden downfall in what was once one of the region’s most lucrative markets.
The bank missed out on billions of dollars in deals after being sued by two of its investment funds, but has since been able to distance itself from the scandal. Goldman Sachs was joint bookrunner for the listing of the state oil company’s drilling business, which at the time was Abu Dhabi’s largest-ever initial public offering.
The company said last year it planned to expand across the Middle East as rising foreign interest and positive economic factors prompted a boom in deals and money flowing into the region.
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