Roadshows kick off on Nov. 28 in the United Arab Emirates, before meetings in Singapore and Hong Kong, and conclude on Dec. 3 in London.

Any bond following investor meetings will be issued under the bank's recently-updated $4 billion euro medium term notes programme, the arrangers said. Proceeds from any potential debt issue would be used for general corporate purposes.

Benchmark-sized deals are typically at least $500 million in size.

Bahrain-based GIB has picked itself, as well as JP Morgan Chase Inc, National Bank of Abu Dhabi, Barclays Plc, Standard Chartered Plc and Societe Generale, to arrange the deal.

Reuters reported the mandated banks earlier this month.

Earlier this year, GIB conducted investor meetings in Malaysia for a possible Islamic bond, or sukuk, under a 3.5 billion ringgit programme but no issue has yet materialised.

Despite its name and its base in Bahrain, GIB is 97.2 percent owned by the Saudi government, a level of risk international investors are likely to be more comfortable with.

Other shareholders are Gulf sovereign wealth funds including Kuwait Investment Authority and Qatar Holding.