Financial Services

The landscape for fixed income has evolved significantly over the last few years and never has the argument for Bahraini bonds as a natural diversifier been stronger than in the last 12 months of 2017.

While bankers might decry the slowdown in growth resulting from curtailed government spending and investor uncertainty, economists – who generally take a longer-term view – often see a silver lining in a sustained drop in the price of a barrel of oil.

With the exception of Saudi Arabia, the banking sector across the GCC is generally fragmented in nature, with a large number of institutions pursuing business within relatively small bankable populations. For decades regulators have extolled the virtues of sector consolidation, in some cases approaching banks discretely to encourage a merger,...

A low oil price environment has presented a number of challenges for Bahrain’s vibrant and fiercely competitive insurance sector. Downward pressure on premiums and a dearth of underwriting opportunities across the region have negatively affected the bottom lines of most Manama-based insurers. However, new opportunities in areas such as health...