gulfnews : Regulatory climate helps Bahrain retain banking, finance industry

Banks and businesses are not leaving Bahrain despite protests in the kingdom. The latest Bahrain spotlight by property consultancy CBRE says that cheap office rents in Dubai, and upbeat economic outlook in Qatar, have not been enough to draw the country's banking and finance industry to new markets.

'It simply hasn't happened at all. Dubai and Qatar have been on about this for years but it is not about office space, it is about regulatory environment,' Mike Williams, the author of the report, told Gulf News.

He added that the presence of 435 financial institutions in Bahrain, as well as its history as a banking hub, remained attractive to banks and businesses despite the recent events in the country.

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