London Office to Close as TII Unveils Plans to Consolidate Strength in Middle East Region

The International Investor, the world's leading wholesale Islamic investment bank, announces today (04 September) the closure of its London office as part of a strategic reassessment aimed at consolidating the firm's physical presence in the MENA region.

The move, to take effect on 15 September, will see operational duties transferred from TII's office in Mount Street, London, to the firm's headquarters in Kuwait. Under the strategic reassessment TII will also open new regional offices in Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and in Egypt.

The International Investor, which has established a world-class reputation as the leading global centre of knowledge into the Islamic financial marketplace, is committed to maintaining a first-class quality of service to both partners and clients in Europe and the US.

The firm has invested heavily in new web-based communications technology at its Kuwait headquarters to ensure clients are unaffected by the transfer of duties from London. By concentrating its Islamic advisory function in Kuwait, TII will provide a 'virtual' global service to clients across the world, supplemented by regular personal visits.

Anil Welinkar of TII London said: "The nature of TII's business is changing fast and increasingly our role is to act as a bridge into the Islamic capital markets. It is for this reason that following an internal analysis, TII plans to consolidate its leadership position in the MENA region by opening new offices in Saudi Arabia, the UAE and ultimately in Egypt.”

Tariq al-Rifai added: "These are very exciting times for TII but our priority now has to be to our clients and partners. These relationships are hugely important and this is why we have gone to great lengths not only to speak personally to our clients but to ensure the quality of service they have come to expect from TII is unaffected during the hand-over period.”

“TII has recently completed a major IT improvement programme at our Kuwait head office which will allow us to offer a virtual global service to our European and American partners and clients. This includes a new web based channel displaying Islamic index information and the latest Net Asset Values of all funds on which TII advises.”

TII currently employs five staff at its London office, which opened in 1993. As part of the transfer, two staff have taken redundancy, with the remaining three relocating to Kuwait.

Information about TII, regular updates about the firm's activities and information for partners and clients relating to the closure can be found on the Internet via www.tii.com.