Israeli business delegation in Bahrain
Israeli business delegation in Bahrainצילום: יח"צ

The first official business delegation from Israel landed today (Wednesday) in Manama, the capital of Bahrain, and met with Bahrain's Minister of Industry, Commerce, and Tourism Zayed bin Rashid Al Zayani and with the country's top banking and business leaders.

The purpose of the delegation is to promote business relations between the countries, with an emphasis on cooperation between the banks so that business people can begin to trade. Bahrain is a regional finance center, and has announced its desire to develop and promote the fintech sector.

Minister Zayed bin Rashid Al Zayani welcomed the first economic delegation from Israel and noted that building economic relations between the two countries is an important step in establishing peace agreements.

According to Minister Al Zayani, Bahrain and Israel see great business potential in establishing commercial and financial ties and that "the visit today is an opening to strengthen economic ties between the two countries."

Bank Hapoalim CEO said: "Relations with Bahrain are a tremendous opportunity for Israeli businessmen, with an emphasis on fintech companies, and are a continuation of Bank Hapoalim's efforts to develop new businesses for its customers with countries in the region. We found in our hosts a desire to build a joint business."

The chairman of the Israel Export Institute, Adiv Baruch, added: "The emirate market, and with it the market of the entire Arab world, is a tremendous opportunity for the Israeli economy in general and for exports in particular. The building of trust during the meetings here in the first business delegation is the beginning of a long-term relationship that will serve all exporters."

The president of the Manufacturers' Association, Dr. Ron Tomer, concluded: "We see the cooperation with the Bahrainis as a tremendous opportunity for Israeli industry and of of joint promotion of the economies. We have found real partners along the way who are interested in moving forward together and we will work to make that happen."