The Bank of Palestine has received in-principle approval for a full banking licence from Abu Dhabi’s financial hub, the ADGM, as it seeks to expand globally to serve the Palestinian diaspora.
Bank of Palestine Global Ltd has received the initial approval for a Category 1 licence from the ADGM’s Financial Services Regulatory Authority, according to a statement from the lender on Monday.
An ADGM Category 1 is a full banking licence, permitting companies to operate as fully fledged banks. The capital requirement for a Category 1 licence is $10 million, the ADGM said. This licence allows companies to accept deposits from the public, manage profit-sharing investment accounts and offer a range of banking products.
This approval will allow the lender to accept deposits and arrange deals in investments, targeting the global Palestinian community at large, the statement added. Once fully operational in the second half of 2026, the licence will allow the bank to operate globally from ADGM.
“This is a historic milestone for Bank of Palestine, ushering in a new era of global reach and future-proof banking and wealth management,” said Hashim Shawa, chairman of Bank of Palestine Group.
“As we mark 65 years since our founding in 1960, operating from Abu Dhabi reflects our ambition to serve our people and partners across the globe, building on a legacy of resilience and innovation.”
Measures introduced by the UAE to attract foreign investment, combined with its position as a gateway to the broader Middle East, Africa and South Asia has helped it to attract global financial institutions.
Separately on Monday, ADGM said the Asia Pacific International Arbitration Chamber will establish an affiliated entity in the financial hub and open an office at its Dispute Resolution Hearing Centre.
Bank of Palestine is the latest among a group of global lenders, as well as insurers, asset and wealth managers, financial institutions and investment houses that have either set up a base in the UAE or invested in solidifying their presence in the country.
Switzerland’s largest bank, UBS, opened an advisory office in Abu Dhabi's financial centre in October. In September, HSBC, Europe's biggest bank by assets, said it was establishing a dedicated wealth centre in Dubai.
The same month, Rothschild & Co, one of the world's biggest financial advisory groups, said its wealth management business, which manages €38 billion ($44.3 billion) in client assets, will take over the UAE operations of Liechtensteinische Landesbank.
Global investment manager Fortress, backed by the UAE’s Mubadala Investment Company, and Kimmeridge, a New York-based alternative asset manager focused on the energy sector, also opened in ADGM in the first half of the year.
Bank of Palestine has maintained a presence in the UAE since 2015 through its DIFC representative office in Dubai and recently expanded its regional footprint by opening a representative office in Cairo to serve its growing client base in Egypt.
Linda Tarazi, who has more than two decades of international banking experience, has been appointed as chief executive of the ADGM entity, where she will lead the bank’s global expansion, the statement said.
ADGM in September said it was the region’s largest international financial centre by the market capitalisation of its registered entities. The total value of ADGM-based firms listed on the Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange surpassed Dh500 billion ($136 billion) by mid-2025.
Arvind Ramamurthy, chief market development officer at ADGM, said the Bank of Palestine’s “long-standing history and expertise” will further enrich Abu Dhabi’s ecosystem of global financial entities.
Bank of Palestine Group specialises in lending to small and medium enterprises and banking under challenging conditions, the statement said. It also enjoys strategic partnerships with development finance institutions.
