Gulf countries and India should improve bilateral investment and trade opportunities, said Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Doha Bank, R. Seetharaman here on Saturday. Mr. Seetharaman was addressing the media on ways to “promote bilateral opportunities”.
Gulf countries including Qatar and UAE could largely benefit India through investments in fields including infrastructure and development, he said while speaking at the meet. The Gulf countries have close to 2.23 trillion USD as funds which are open for investment. “Trading partnership between India and the Gulf is 133 billion USD. In the next five years trade is expected to improve,” he said. Such a conducive investment atmosphere will benefit Indian corporations, Small and Medium Entrepreneurs and financiers, he said.
Cross border opportunity
In newly formed States including Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, investments from the Gulf could bring in large scale development, he predicted. “Gulf offers a cross border opportunity that not many countries can provide India. It is high time to create a business model that benefits entrepreneurs in both the countries,” he said. As the cost of borrowing is high in India, planning business ventures in the Gulf will reap benefits for Indian business men, he added.
Doha Bank which has two branches in Mumbai and one in Kochi is already providing funding for corporates and SMEs at a reduced cost of 2 per cent in India, he said. The bank is expected to branch out after subsidiary conversion, he said.
Doha Bank, has A category rating from the International Rating Agencies. The bank also has representative offices in eleven countries starting from Singapore, Hong Kong, Shanghai, Seoul, Tokyo, Sydney, Istanbul, Frankfurt, London, Johannesburg, Sharjah and Toronto.
