Watching their regional counterparts struggle to stay afloat, banks in Qatar are making very calculated and prudent moves this year. While the global financial turmoil has not hit the Qatari banking sector as hard as other GCC nations, bankers and analysts alike are expecting the ripple effect of the crisis to arrive sooner than later. Fortunately, most banks in the pearl of the Gulf did not invest heavily in structured products or toxic assets — as many other banks in the region did — which has helped Qatar avoid major a fallout in its small, yet robust, banking sector. With a predicted real GDP growth of around 8.5 percent in 2009, today Qatar is one of the fastest growing economies in the world. As global markets face an indefinite period of recession, many investors are looking for financial safe havens. With its diverse and relatively peppy economy, Qatar hopes bankers
