UPDATE 1-Dubai's Shuaa swings to small Q3 profit

* Q3 swings to profit as investment business gains momentum

* Investment business Q3 profit up 625 pct from Q3 2009

* Sees increased activity in syndicate and trading desk

(Adds detail, background, comment)

DUBAI, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Investment bank Shuaa Capital SHUA.DU on Wednesday swung to a third-quarter profit, buoyed by gains in its investment banking business.

Shuaa posted a profit of 0.2 million dirhams in the three months to Sept. 30, up from a loss of 269.26 million dirhams in the same period last year.

The company, one of the Gulf Arab region's largest investment banks, was hit hard by the global financial downturn as impairments related to troubled assets erased profits.

"Recording a profit, albeit small, is an important achievement in an extremely challenging environment characterized by the lowest market activity since 2004," said Majid Al Ghurair, chairman of Shuaa Capital in a statement.

The company said its investment banking division recorded a profit of 2.9 million for the third quarter, up 625 percent over the previous year.

Shuaa said its investment banking division is finalising two mergers and acquisitions transactions, working on two private placements and sees the syndicate and trading desk becoming more active, despite weak market conditions.

Last month, chief executive Sameer al-Ansari told Reuters Middle East Investment Summit that the firm has mandates for five initial public offerings (IPOs) in the United Arab Emirates [ID:nLDE69I1WW].

Shuaa in February said it aimed to triple its fee income in the next three years, as it struggled to become profitable again. [ID:nLDE61722K]

(Reporting by Shaheen Pasha; Editing by Amran Abocar)