Dubai's Mashreq will allow foreigners to own up to 20 per cent of the bank's shares, it said in a bourse statement on Wednesday.

Foreign investors currently own only 1.9 per cent of the bank's shares, data from the Dubai Financial Market shows. The change in foreign ownership is effective from Thursday, Mashreq said.

About 20 per cent of Mashreq's shares are free float, while the Al-Ghurair family holds a 70 per cent stake, according to Reuters data.

Mashreq is Dubai's third-largest bank by market value.-Reuters