UBL Funds now In The Middle East

UBL Funds now offers Mutual Funds in The Middle East

Karachi: December 30, 2013 – Securities and Commodities Authority (SECA) UAE has recently given approval for distribution of three additional funds managed by UBL Fund Managers in the United Arab Emirates.

UBL UAE will now have a total offering of seven mutual funds from UBL Fund Managers for its customers. This is the first time that any asset management company originating from Pakistan has been given the permission of providing a diverse range of investment from fixed income/commodity/equity products in UAE.

UBL Bank (Tanzania) Limited Inaugurated by H.E Dr. Mohamed Gharib Bilal

The Vice President of Tanzania, His Excellency Dr. Mohamed Gharib Bilal yesterday inaugurated UBL Bank (Tanzania) Limited (UBTL), in an impressive ceremony at the Bank’s premises, located in the heart of the city centre of Dar es Salaam. The launch was attended by a wide cross section of dignitaries & luminaries from different walks of life including HE, the High Commissioner of Pakistan, Mr. Tajammul Altaf, Mr. A Kobello, Director, Bank of Tanzania, diplomats, CEOs, and senior officials of the UBL Group, including Sir Mohammed Anwar Pervez, OBE HPk, Deputy Chairman of the UBL Board of Directors  & Chairman Bestway Group, Mr. Atif R. Bokhari, UBL’s President & Chairman of the Board of  Directors of UBTL, Mr. Zameer Choudrey, CEO Bestway Group & Director United Bank Limited, Mr. Wajahat Husain Head of UBL International & Director UBTL, and Mr. Rayomond Kotwal, UBL CFO & Director UBTL.
Over the last five decades, UBL’s global network has grown to over 1,300 branches, across UAE, Bahrain, Qatar, Yemen, USA and Pakistan.

Pakistani Banks Spreads surprise in May'13

Banks: Spreads surprise in May'13 Weighted average banking sector spreads have depicted a surprising rebound of 15bps MoM to 6.34% in May'13, the highest since Dec'12. In this regard, deposit rates have come off by 8bps MoM to 5.15% while lending yields have gone up by 7bps MoM to 11.49%. That said, industry spreads will likely trend lower in 2HCY13 to ~6% considering the SBP has recently cut the Discount Rate by 50bps to 9% and no relief has been given on the rate floor on savings deposits. Following the cut in DR, although banks will clearly be affected by tighter interest rate margins (preliminary workings suggest AKD Banks Universe CY13F/CY14F EPS estimates will be trimmed by 5% on average), we see limited impact on target prices and our investment case remains intact given the lower risk free rate. As such, although banking sector shares may remain under pressure in the immediate-term, we believe their valuations, for the most part, are very attractive which should cushion further downside while being supportive of a rebound before too long. Importantly, even though banks earnings across CY13F/CY14F will likely be soft, their dividends should remain stable given strong capital bases. This underpins our selective preference for the larger banks where we like UBL, BAFL and NBP.