DIFFERENT STRATEGIES, SIMILAR SUCCESS
Arab Banking Corporation and Gulf International Bank stand in close
proximity. They are separated only by the Bahraini Hilton Hotel and a
makeshift football pitch with a bare limestone surface. Looming like
obelisks of glass and mortar, both banks have their backs to the nearby
Arabian Gulf and each occupies a plot of recently reclaimed land. And
the forecourt of each is lined with luxury cars.
There the similarities end. For these are but physical likenesses.
They attest only to the banks' common home and status as offshore
banking units (OBUs) in Manama, capital of Bahrain. Inside ABC
there's an atmosphere charged with ambition: "We've got a
global network and a commitment to world-wide expansion," boasted
Abdulla Saudi, president and chief executive officer. A visit to GIB
reveals a more staid atmosphere: "They're all ex-guardsmen,
either by profession or by nature," said one of its recently
departed bankers. He...
