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A powerful presence in Oman, Oman Arab Bank (OAB) was established on 1st October 1984 as a closed joint stock company. The bank began its operations after acquiring the branches of Arab Bank , Plc., Jordan , which had been operating in Oman since 1973. Then in 1992, operations in the Sultanate were further expanded by the acquisition of all the retail branches of Omani European Bank, with which OAB then merged in 1994. 49% of the Bank's share capital is held by Arab Bank Plc. and the remaining 51% is held by a leading Omani investment company, Oman International Development and Investment Co. SAOG.
Initially established with a share capital of RO 6 million, this capital has increased progressively over the years and on 31st December 2001 amounted to RO 22 million. The shareholders funds, comprising share capital and reserves, at December 2001 amounted to RO 40 million, while the Capital Adequacy ratio, calculated in accordance with the guidelines issued by the Bank for International Settlements was 17% at December 2001 OAB's growth and success can largely be attributed to its conservative philosophy. Since its inception, OAB has followed the principles of business conservatism of the Arab Bank Plc, with a particular emphasis on providing the highest level of personalized services to its customers. OAB has made significant contributions to the development of the Sultanate's economy by financing a number of infrastructure construction and development projects such as highways, airports, harbors, power stations, water desalination plants and hospitals. Recently, OAB was selected as the local banker by the main contractor, who is building the Liquefied Natural Gas plant, near the city of Sur. This contract is by far the largest (US $6 billion) and nationally the most important project in the Sultanate of Oman. In a step that further reflects OAB's commitment to meeting customer requirements, the Bank set up a unit for local and international investment management. The unit offers a range of investment portfolios in addition to investment management, financial issue coverage, brokerage services and custodian services. OAB has consistently received excellent credit ratings from international rating agencies such as BankWatch, Capital Intelligence and Moody's. These ratings have always been the highest among the Omani banks. The distinguishing features of the Bank are its focus to provide personalized customer services of the highest standards, an in-depth Omani market knowledge, broad product skills, and a commitment to excellence. In addition, OAB has a particular specialization in the provision of trade finance such as export and import letter of credit. Within the Sultanate of Oman, OAB has 37 branches/offices. The Bank has also an extensive international reach through nearly 400 branches and associates of Arab Bank Plc spread over 40 countries.
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