Senior officials of Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (Adib) met recently with renowned US economist Larry Summers to discuss developments in the regional and global economy during a visit to the UAE capital.

Summers served as the Secretary of Treasury under US President Clinton and was appointed director of the White House National Economic Council by President Barak Obama in 2009. He also served as the 27th president of Harvard University.

He was accompanied by a delegation from Citibank, including Atiq Ur Rehman, CEO, Mena; Aziz Rahman, managing director and head of Financial Institutions, Middle East; Alberto Verme, Citigroup's chairman of Banking for Europe, Middle East and Africa; and Ahmet Bekce, corporate banking head, Middle East and Turkey.

Tirad Al-Mahmoud, chief executive officer of Adib said: “It was a lively discussion because the global economy is at a very important juncture, with major economies still struggling to recover, as well as uncertainty in the direction of monetary policy.

“We exchanged views on many things, including where benchmark rates may be trending, and Larry was particularly interested to hear how the UAE economy is showing very positive signs of a return to its healthy long-term growth trajectory,” he added. – TradeArabia News Service