BNP Paribas has received a regional headquarters licence in Saudi Arabia, Saudi state news agency SPA reported, as France’s biggest bank joins other international companies expanding their presence in the kingdom.

Saudi Arabia’s investment minister, Fahd bin Abduljalil al-Saif, and BNP Chairman Jean Lemierre announced the licence during a meeting in Paris.

Saudi Arabia has pushed multinational companies to relocate their regional headquarters to Riyadh in recent years as part of efforts to position the capital as a leading financial hub in the Gulf, alongside Dubai and Abu Dhabi in the neighbouring UAE.

The government has said companies without a Riyadh headquarters risk losing access to state contracts.

BNP Paribas’ presence in the Middle East includes offices in Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain.

BNP Paribas joins a growing list of global banks that have secured Saudi regional headquarters licences in recent years, including Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley, Citigroup and BNY Mellon.

Featured image: Edited by Fintech News UAE based on an image by whoisdanny via Magnific.