StanChart expertise will help Qatari investors in foreign forays, says CEO

Standard Chartered will be able to draw upon its vast product and industry expertise to assist investors in Qatar looking to make acquisition in upstream assets abroad, the bank’s Qatar CEO Charles Carlson has said.“We have well qualified professionals on our global team who can help investors here who look to make acquisition in upstream assets abroad – whether it is in mining or oil and gas, particularly in countries on our network,” Carlson told Gulf Times in an interview.While many will have this expertise, the difference Standard Chartered can make is in relation to its “local knowledge”, he said.“We have been in Qatar since 1950.  We are kind of embedded here … and in the areas we operate we are embedded in the structure,” Carlson said. He said Standard Chartered had a loyal client base in Qatar.“We are the oldest bank in Qatar and I have seen a lot of customer loyalty here. Many have been our customers for generations together,” said Carlson who took over as Standard Chartered Qatar CEO last month.He affirmed that Standard Chartered would not be competing with the local banks in the mass market on the retail side.“But there are certain things we can do here. On the retail side, I can bring in certain technologies, which we developed in other mass markets in our operation.“In Qatar, we plan a mobile banking application based on iPhones, though the timeframe cannot be set now… it is hard to predict. The future for our retail banking here is very high-end priority banking business” Carlson said.Qatar has a lot of tech-savvy people. The Internet penetration in the country is very high. And also, the computer literacy is also quite high, the Standard Chartered CEO pointed out.He said Standard Chartered would definitely be looking at project finance opportunities, especially with the planned implementation of projects worth billions of dollars in relation to infrastructure upgrade.Asked whether Standard Chartered Bank would open more branches in Qatar, Carlson said: “We are going through a whole bunch of analysis at the moment. But the model of distribution in the world in banking is changing.“There used to be a case where people would visit branches and then go to a cashier. But a majority of those who come to cashiers are now corporates.”Currently, Standard Chartered has three branches in Qatar.On Qatarisation, Carlson said Standard Chartered had entered into an agreement with the Ministry of Labour to sponsor some 30 students in universities. Standard Chartered is also setting up a Talent Development Committee chaired by the bank’s HR manager, who is a Qatari, to develop the national workforce in the bank. “We are also keen to provide adequate exposure to our top Qatari talent. We will provide them overseas training in areas of their strength,” Carlson said.Focus on small and medium enterprisesStandard Chartered is committed to serve the small and medium enterprises in the country, Qatar CEO Charles Carlson has said.“We are building that business. Currently, we have a small team. But we will significantly focus on SMEs in Qatar in the months ahead,” Carlson said.Banks in Qatar have teamed up with QDB to assist small and medium enterprises in the country. Last year a programme called Al Dhameen was launched with a view to ensuring capital to small and medium enterprises (SMEs) in Qatar.Through Al Dhameen, SME owners are provided finance with proper interest rates and a chance to grow and expand their activities by providing them with operational amount.