Korean banks rushing to Dubai

I recently read an article about the rush of Korean banks to Dubai. It was quite interesting because I’ve never heard of our national banks – Woori, Shinhan, and such - operating in other countries. And, I’ve never thought of Dubai as the financial center of the Islamic world, and of course, I’ve never thought that our national banks would rush to go there. This situation really gave me a desire to study about it.

The reason why Korean commercial banks are rushing to move into the Dubai International Financial Center in the Middle East is because DIFC has emerged as a financial center of the Islamic world, with oil dollars pumping into the area in the wake of skyrocketing oil prices. Korea Exchange Bank recently filed an application with the Dubai financial authorities to open shop in Dubai. Woori Bank also plans to open an office in Dubai to seek to meet demand in Dubai in conjunction with the operation of its Bahrain branch. Shinhan Bank is also set to submit an application this week to win approval to open its Dubai branch. These movements of our national banks are very impressive because they’re trying to take the opportunities that exist, by actually doing something to take it. In addition, this situation is also an opportunity for Dubai, too.

There are some reasons why the movement of Korean banks to Dubai is an opportunity for both them. First, banks need money to operate. No matter what they do to make lots of profits, they certainly need money to do something. Even though Korean national banks are having enough money to operate, it would be a good chance for them if they can make lots of money in Dubai to be deposited in the accounts that they are taking care of. They would have to leave Korea and open offices in Dubai, which is something not so easy. But then, why not? Why wouldn’t they leave Korea if they can get lots of money to take care of in Dubai? Second, lots of people or organizations in DIFC can also regard this situation as a chance to increase their money. Even though they already have enough money to spend in their entire lives, however, they will lose the value of their money if they don’t put it into bank accounts due to inflation. And concerning this, as far as I’m concerned, Korean banks are somewhat the best dealing with customers’ money. Therefore, this can be a good opportunity for DIFC’s riches.

The rush of Korean banks to Dubai reminded me of a simple truth. As we all know, “Business is all about money.” I really don’t think there are any good reasons to persuade me that business is something which is beyond earning money. There may be some other factors that are important. However, no one can deny that business is to make money, and to make our lives more wealthy.


Reference : http://news.naver.com/main/read.nhn?mode=LSOD&mid=sec&sid1=108&oid=014&aid=0001964761


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