EFG International has been given approval by the Dubai Financial Services Authority (DSFA) to open an advisory office in the city.
It will be based in the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and is expected to be fully operational by 11 December 2019.
The firm signalled its intention to bolster its presence in the Middle East in March, building on from its Bahrain operation.
Giorgio Pradelli, chief executive of EFG International, said: “We are progressing well with our 2022 strategic plan.
“As part of this, the opening of our presence in Dubai is another important milestone to strategically enhance our international footprint across markets which offer a significant long-term growth potential for EFG.”
Hire
It will be headed by Sascha Pietrek, who joins from Deutsche Bank, where he was managing director for the Middle East and Africa region and market head for the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
Before that, he was co-head of the German bank’s asset and wealth management Dubai office.
At EFG, Pietrek will be responsible for launching EFG’s operations in the DIFC and further developing its presence in the Middle East.
He will report to Adrian Kyriazi, head of EFG’s continental Europe and Middle East region.
Kyriazi added: “With the launch of our new advisory office in Dubai, we are convinced that we will be able to capture new growth opportunities in the region.”
