Tarek Fadlallah was named CEO of Nomura Asset Management Middle East in the Japanese heavyweight’s newly opened office in Dubai.
For the previous 2.5 years, Mr. Fadlallah served as the firm’s head of asset management, operating from Nomura Securities’ offices in Dubai.
In an interview Wednesday, Mr. Fadlallah said the growth of Nomura Asset Management’s business in the region, predominantly serving sovereign wealth fund clients looking to invest in Japanese and Asian equities, led to the decision to open a fully licensed office to build on that momentum.
Nomura Asset Management currently manages about $7 billion on behalf of institutional clients in the Persian Gulf region.
Mr. Fadlallah said the growth of sovereign wealth funds in the region, and their rising confidence in Japan’s economic outlook since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe launched an aggressive economic stimulus program in late 2012, should provide ample business opportunities over the coming five to 10 years.
Nomura Asset Management had $291 billion in assets under management as of March 31.