The Gulf offices of Magic Circle firms Freshfields and Linklaters have taken lead roles on the latest sell-off by the Royal Bank of Scotland, this time in the Middle East.

The UK bank has sold its retail banking business in the UAE to Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB), the first time a UAE bank has bought out an international banks’ local franchise.

RBS is selling off its UAE interest for an estimated US$46m. ADCB will finance the acquisition from internal cash resources.

Freshfields’ lead partner on the deal, Abu Dhabi-based David Higgins, said the deal was a historic moment for international business relations in the UAE. Higgins – who advised the RBS on its £26.5bn bid for NatWest back in 2000 – was assisted by lawyers from London and Dubai advising ADCB general counsel Simon Copleston and vice president legal counsels Olivia Birchall and Nabil Azar.

Returning to assist their longstanding client RBS was Linklaters, with Dubai lead partner Nick Garland acting on the deal. The firm also acted for the bank last year when it sold off 54 branches, $3.2bn in loans and $7.1bn in deposits to Australian-based ANZ Bank (in Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia and Hong Kong, the Philippines and Vietnam). A host of other law firms across Asia also reaped roles on RBS’s region-wide sell-off of its assets, including Freshfields (advising acquirer ANZ Bank).


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