On Tuesday, Hana Financial Group announced that it had inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Saudi Arabia’s Export-Import Bank (EXIM) to bolster financial partnership and assist South Korean firms taking part in Saudi Arabia’s national initiative.
The agreement was formalized at the headquarters of Saudi Arabia’s National Development Fund (NDF) in Riyadh on Monday. As part of the MOU, both parties plan to strengthen bilateral ties, discover new global projects in the Middle East, and provide funds and credit lines for the Hana Group and EXIM Bank’s global networks.
Moreover, Hana and the NDF discussed measures to increase cooperation, such as launching joint ventures with banks and funds under the NDF, and investing in connection to Saudi’s Vision 2030 project. The Vision 2030 is a national project geared towards achieving political, social, and economic transformation, which seeks to reduce the country’s reliance on the oil industry and invigorate the private sector.
Hana plans to help South Korean companies that are involved or planning to take part in Vision 2030, such as a project to build an eco-friendly city named NEOM in Saudi Arabia’s northwestern region, to gain better access to the Middle East’s finance. The group will also provide financial aid to the firms, particularly in the areas of green infrastructure, construction, and renewable energy.
“We will do our best to give financial assistance to South Korean companies so they will create a second and third wave in the Middle East,” Lee Eun-hyung, Hana group’s vice chairman, said.
Lee Eun-hyung, vice chairman of Hana Financial Group (L), Park Joon-yong, South Korean ambassador to Saudi Arabia, and Saad Al-Khalb, CEO of Saudi Export-Import Bank, pose for a photo after signing an initial agreement to expand business cooperation at the headquarters of Saudi Arabia's National Development Fund in Riyadh on Sept. 25, 2023, in this photo provided by Hana group. (PHOTO NOT FOR SALE) (Yonhap)
nyway@yna.co.kr
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