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dubai – Goldman Sachs Group to open office in Abu Dhabi, marking major step for US investment banking giant It has been embroiled in the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) scandal.
Goldman’s new outpost will be based at the Abu Dhabi Global Market International Financial Center pending final regulatory approval, according to an internal memo seen by Bloomberg. According to the memo, the office will add to hubs in Dubai, Doha and Riyadh and enable it to deepen relationships with clients.
The bank’s Abu Dhabi office will initially focus on asset management, while its investment bankers will remain in the Dubai office, according to people familiar with the matter.
A Goldman Sachs representative confirmed the contents of the memo but declined to comment further.
Goldman Sachs said last year it planned to expand across the Middle East as growing foreign interest and positive economic factors prompted a boom in deals and money flowing into the region.
Abu Dhabi, home to a sovereign wealth fund that manages more than US$1 trillion (S$1.3 trillion) in assets, has attracted some big names in recent months. Hedge fund billionaire Ray Dalio is setting up an offshoot of his family office in Abu Dhabi as part of his escalation into the Middle East.
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 a state-owned oil company’s drilling unit, which was Abu Dhabi’s largest initial public offering at the time.Bloomberg
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