Bank al Etihad to Pursue ADGM Bank Licence Under New MoU
The Jordanian lender plans a Category 1 licensed bank in Abu Dhabi Global Market, with Ethmar International Holding and other UAE investors as partners.
Nadia Mansour Nadia Mansour covers fintech across the UAE and MENA for Anecdoted -- digital banking, payments licences and the startups building around them. nadia@anecdoted.com
Bank al Etihad, a lender based in Jordan, has agreed to explore the creation of a new bank inside Abu Dhabi Global Market, the financial free zone in the UAE capital. The arrangement takes the form of a Memorandum of Understanding, and its purpose is to give the Jordanian institution a route into the UAE market.
The venture would bring in Ethmar International Holding, an Abu Dhabi group that manages institutional investments, as a partner. Other investors based in the UAE would take part as well. Bank al Etihad's current footprint covers Jordan and Iraq, so a completed deal would put it in a third market.
A Category 1 licence, and clients beyond the mainland
Under the proposal, the new institution would hold a Category 1 banking licence in ADGM, a class of authorisation that sits inside the centre's full regulatory regime. Supervision would fall to the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA).
The bank would aim at regional and international clients, among them companies that do business outside the UAE mainland. Bank al Etihad says the platform would support cross-border business and transactions across the markets it is targeting.
Corporate, institutional and wealth relationships
The bank intends to use the new platform to open relationships with corporate clients, institutional clients and high-net-worth individuals it does not serve today. Those three groups form the core of the commercial plan.
Bank al Etihad describes the project as part of a wider growth strategy. Its stated goals include broadening its product range, drawing revenue from more sources, and strengthening ties with regional and international markets.
Oversight and outstanding approvals
Once established, the bank would operate within ADGM's regulatory framework as a licensed entity. It would be expected to meet regulatory requirements and controls in both the UAE and Jordan. The launch remains subject to all necessary official approvals.
Free zones such as ADGM have become a practical entry point for banks that want a UAE base without applying for a mainland licence, particularly when the intended clients are companies and investors operating across borders. For a Jordanian lender with an existing book in Iraq, a licensed presence in Abu Dhabi would place it closer to Gulf corporate treasuries and family wealth, while keeping the entity inside a supervisory structure the FSRA already runs. The trade-off is that the business depends on approvals the bank does not control, and a Category 1 licence brings capital and compliance obligations that scale with the balance sheet it builds.
For now the plan stays at the MoU stage. Incorporation and licensing depend on consents that have not yet been granted.
