Darien Middle East | Andrew Cunningham has spent more than 25 years writing, training and consulting on banking and finance, both in the Middle East and in Europe and the U.S.

Iranian Bank Survey, February 2016

2 February 2016

Here is Darien Analytics 2016 survey of Iranian banks. It contains statistics on 26 individual banks and on the banking system as a whole, comparisons with other regional banking systems, and an analysis of the challenges and opportunities that Iranian banks will face in the years ahead.

Darien Analytics GCC Commercial Bank Performance Ranking 2015

28 June 2015

Darien Analytics is pleased to present its annual performance ranking for GCC commercial banks. This year we again analyse the performance of 74 commercial banks, but there are some newcomers compared to last year and some who are left out. We’ve also included an analysis of Islamic banks’ performance relative to conventional banks.

The Regulation and Supervision of Large Banks in the Middle East

19 November 2015

Here is a presentation that I prepared for a seminar organised by the Financial Stability Institute and the Arab Monetary Fund for Middle Eastern bank regulators. It contains statistics on Arab banking systems and examples of policy measures that regional regulators are taking.

Preparing for Change in Saudi Finance

Here is an article on recent developments in Saudi financial markets that I wrote for the Arab Banker magazine (of which I am editor). It appeared in October 2015.
Read the article

Analysis of the Syrian Banking System

Here are two of my analyses of the Syrian banking system. Vol2 No3 focuses on banking activity during the crisis and Vol2 No 4 estimates the cost of recapitalising the state-owned banks.
Click here to read Vol2 No3
Click here to read Vol2 No4

Moroccan banks: More good news

The Moroccan banking system is not as well known as it should be. It is well regulated, healthy, and interesting things are happening there. Here is an overview of the Moroccan banking system, including statistics for the big banks, that I wrote for the Arab Banker magazine in September 2015.
Click here to read the article