Credit Suisse allocates $600 mln for Saudi expansion: report

Credit Suisse has committed $600 million of its own capital to expand operations in Saudi Arabia, Bloomberg reported Thursday, citing sources familiar with the matter.

The Zurich-based lender plans to use the funds to offer investors Lombard loans, which could help facilitate trading in local stocks, the sources said.

Last year, the agency reported that Credit Suisse was in talks with the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA), the kingdom’s central bank, for an onshore license.

Those discussions are at an advanced stage but no final agreement has been reached on the license, the sources said.

“Credit Suisse is further expanding and investing in its business in Saudi Arabia,” bank spokesman Adam Bradbery said, without commenting on how much the lender has set aside for its Saudi expansion.

“We are continuing to work toward a fully-fledged onshore private banking presence, and a natural progression to further build our local footprint would be a banking license.”

Credit Suisse was among banks invited to pitch for an advisory role in the listing of state-run Saudi Aramco, Bloomberg reported last month.

The oil giant has asked JPMorgan Chase & Co. and Morgan Stanley to assist with its upcoming initial public offering (IPO) and could call on another bank with access to Chinese investors, Reuters reported Wednesday.

The two New York-based lenders have joined Moelis & Co in being tapped for leading roles in what is expected to be the world's biggest IPO, worth $100 billion.