UAE firm eyes $2b investment in BD

A United Arab Emirates-based investment company has expressed interest in investing more than $2.0 billion in Bangladesh's priority sectors, signalling renewed foreign investor interest in the country's infrastructure and capital market.
Abu Dhabi-based Equiline Finance signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Prime Bank Investment on Monday to jointly explore investment opportunities and develop bankable projects across key sectors, according to a statement.
The proposed investment pipeline covers government-backed projects in energy, transport, healthcare, ports and logistics, agriculture and agro-processing, waste and water management, tourism, digital infrastructure and other priority sectors.
Market operators said the partnership comes at a time when Bangladesh is actively seeking to diversify sources of foreign investment amid pressure on external financing and rising demand for long-term capital to support infrastructure development.
Under the agreement, Prime Bank Investment, a wholly owned subsidiary of Prime Bank PLC, will act as Equiline Finance's local investment banking partner by identifying investment opportunities, conducting bankability assessments, structuring transactions and facilitating capital market financing and regulatory processes.
The collaboration is expected to create a structured platform for mobilising institutional foreign capital into Bangladesh's infrastructure and capital market while strengthening investment ties between Bangladesh and the United Arab Emirates.
"Bangladesh continues to attract serious international capital for infrastructure, energy transition and sustainable development," said Syed M Omar Tayub, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Prime Bank Investment.
He said the partnership would combine Equiline Finance's global financing capability with Prime Bank Investment's domestic market expertise to transform investment interest into well-structured, bankable projects capable of attracting long-term capital.
Equiline Finance Chief Executive Officer Salah Al Nasser said Bangladesh offers strong economic fundamentals and a clear development agenda, making it an attractive destination for sustainable investments.
"Partnering with Prime Bank Investment strengthens our local interface for project origination, structuring and market execution as we explore high-impact investments across priority sectors," he said, adding that the partnership would help establish a durable platform for sustainable and structured finance in Bangladesh.
Prime Bank Investment has over 16 years of experience in Bangladesh's investment banking industry, providing debt and equity capital market services, corporate advisory, portfolio management and trustee services.
Equiline Finance specialises in structured project finance, export finance, sustainable and impact investments, capital structuring, risk management, mergers and acquisitions, and institutional advisory.
If the proposed investment programme materialises, it could become one of the largest recent foreign investment initiatives in Bangladesh, providing a major boost to infrastructure financing, expanding foreign participation in the capital market and deepening the country's economic ties with Gulf investors, market insiders say.

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