First Gulf Bank (FGB) plans to set up four more representative branches in Asia where the Abu Dhabi-based bank already writes letter of credit (L/C) business.

The bank is specifically targeting south-east Asia's lucrative energy and commodity sectors in which it wants to play a bigger role.

License applications

FGB is currently in the process of applying for licences to open representative offices in Jakarta in Indonesia, Seoul in South Korea, Beijing in China and Hong Kong.

The Singapore representative branch of FGB opened its doors in 2007 and became a wholesale banking office two years later.

The bank is also mulling plans to open a representative office in Vietnam at a later date.

Asian loan book

FGB is particularly interested in developing its trade and commodity financing operations, possibly with specific focuses on coal and oil.

Today, the bank claims it already has a profitable loan book in Asia, which includes L/Cs, of about US$2 billion.

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