MEA Finance - December 2021

December 2021

On Course for Success Hisham Alrayes CEO of GFH Financial Group

December 2021

On Course for Success Hisham Alrayes CEO of GFH Financial Group

14 Market Outlook | 24 Trade Finance | 42 Debt Restructuring | 46 Banking Technology | 55 MEA Finance Awards 2021

Congratulatio of the MEA Fi

ations to all the winners Finance Awards 2021

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In this issue...

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ere it is, your December 2021 issue, the final issue of this year.

It has been both a busy and a fascinating year, watching the much mused over and predicted post-pandemic landscape taking shape as we continued our accelerated movement toward new forms of banking and finance. Changes have been more consciously observed because of the abruptly realised need for digitisation to keep things operating through the pandemic. Had Covid-19 not become part of our lives, maybe we would not have noticed the changes so starkly as their adoption and implementation would have occurred more gradually. However, we are where we now are, facing the next twelve months with new hopes and objectives, and with a pervading cautious optimism that makes for a healthy way to start a new year.

With an uplifting flourish, we end 2021 on a celebratory note with almost thirty pages covering our MEA Finance Annual Awards. Starting at page 55, the winners of the awards and their achievements are all described. Once again, the MEA Finance team congratulates all the winners and offer our sincere thanks to all the very numerous banks and institutions who nominated.

Then peeking over the fence into 2022, in an effort to gauge what some of the key drivers in the coming year may be, our Market Roundup section, from page 14, asks leading regional market participants to give us their thoughts of what the new year will mean for the industry. “We expect a year of two halves”, says Michael Bolliger from UBS Global Wealth Management. We then cross borders into our section looking at regional trade finance, pages 24 to 33, where our contributors assess that we will see increased adoption of technology to move processes more efficiently and where moves are being made to help SMEs benefit from the facilities usually only accessible to larger businesses, “They have historically not been able to attract the kind of funding from a pricing or quantum perspective that large corporates can command”, notes Citi’s David Aldred.

The cover story for this month features Hisham Alrayes, CEO of GFH Financial Group, page 34. He tells us that their strategy of actively investing for growth has paid off with the positive results they had planned for despite the very real challenges of identifying the best opportunities, “One of the main challenges we have faced this year has been identifying the best opportunities for our investors as the world opens again”.

This issue continues along veins of optimism and rejuvenation with an article on debt restructuring, page 42, detailing the reforms being implemented across the region to make economies more enticing to investors, and in our Opinion Piece, page 52, with George Hojeige, CEO of Virtuzone, he tells us that the UAE Government’s tactical approach to managing the pandemic has swiftly put the country back on track.

Finally, and in addition to the above, we of course include our regular coverage of market news and banking technology so, with all of this issue for you to read through until our next in February 2022, allow us all at MEA Finance wish you a happy, healthy and fulfilling New Year.

mea-finance.com

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CONTENTS

CONTENTS 34

MARKET NEWS

6

Saudi EXIM Bank, HSBC and SABB sign MoU to advance Trade & Export Finance and Credit Insurance Collaboration

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Emirates NBD joins hands with AFIN as a founding industry partner for its global fintech registry

MARKET OUTLOOK

14 18 22

The near-term outlook for the GCC Going Forward A Broadly Positive Journey Ahead

TRADE FINANCE

24 28 32

Charting a new course for trade finance Smoothing the Path Facing the changes in Trade Finance

LEADERSHIP SERIES

40

Reliability and Growth

BANKRUPTCY & DEBT RESTRUCTURING

42

MEA Finance WEB: www.mea-finance.com EMAIL: info@mea-finance.com PUBLISHED BY: Creative Middle East Media FZ LLE, 19th Floor, Creative Tower, Fujairah Creative City, PO Box 4422, Fujairah, UAE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND PUBLISHER : Kenneth Mitchen Email: ken.mitchen@mea-finance.com

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Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

Reorganise and Reform

BANKING TECHNOLOGY

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Reimagining banking with new digital business model archetypes

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PARTNER CONTENT

48 50

Knowing Your Customer Bonyan REIT Fund, Enriching experiences

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MARKET INSIGHT

52

Fast-tracking the resurgence of the UAE economy

AWARDS

58

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The MEA Finance Awards 2021 recognise the outstanding achievements of the regions banking and financial technology sector

LIFESTYLE

86

The BMW Concept XM – power and luxury beyond all conventions

32

58

40

46

86

mea-finance.com

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MARKET NEWS

Saudi EXIM Bank, HSBC and SABB sign MoU to advance Trade & Export Finance and Credit Insurance Collaboration The scope includes the establishment of a framework for cooperation in export-import financing and insurance products

Eng. Saad Alkhalb Chief Executive Officer of Saudi EXIM Bank and Stephen Moss Regional Chief Executive Officer, HSBC MENAT

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audi EXIM Bank announced that it has launched a strategic partnership with HSBC Bank Middle East Limited (“HSBC”) and Saudi British Bank (“SABB”), both leading international banking and financial services providers in Saudi Arabia, the Middle East and beyond. The partnership establishes a framework of cooperation between the three organizations in the areas of trade & export financing and credit insurance in line with Saudi EXIM Bank’s mandate to boost the export of Saudi products and services.

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The collaboration will also seek to capitalize on HSBC’s global expertise and experience in providing export financing and working with credit insurance including: Export Credit Insurance to Saudi exporters against commercial and non-commercial risks, supply of Export Financing and Buyer’s Credit Financing in relation to international contracts, Project Financing, Small and Medium Enterprisedirected Financing, and also Letters of Credit Confirmation.

Areas of collaboration also include the fostering of knowledge transfer, mutual involvement in relevant events,

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

activities, and the sharing of market intelligence and country reports to highlight commercial and political risks associated in international trade activities.

Commenting on the signing of the MOU, Eng. Saad Alkhalb, Chief Executive Officer of Saudi EXIM Bank, said: “In keeping with our commitment to drive efforts to develop and diversify Saudi Arabia’s non-oil exports and to enhance cross-border trade flows, our collaboration with HSBC and SABB represents a significant step towards achieving our objectives to build effective partnerships with national and international financial institutions. We look forward to working together to contribute to realizing Vision 2030’s goals.”

For his part, Stephen Moss, Regional Chief Executive Officer, HSBC Middle East, North Africa and Turkey, said: “Vision 2030 is one of the world’s most ambitious economic transformation programs and HSBC – with a global network, covering more than 90% of world GPD, trade and capital flows – is well positioned to support the Kingdom’s aims for the sustainable growth and development of Saudi businesses and exporters with our financing, investment and transaction banking solutions.”

Tony Cripps, Managing General Director of SABB added that “As Saudi Arabia’s largest trade bank we are pleased to partner with Saudi EXIM to enhance our trade & export finance and risk mitigation capabilities for clients in support of Saudi Vision 2030 and the diversification of Saudi Exports.”

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Issued by: HSBC Bank Middle East Limited U.A.E Branch, P.O.Box 66, Dubai, U.A.E, regulated by the Central Bank of the U.A.E for the purposes of this promotion and lead regulated by the Dubai Financial Services Authority. © Copyright HSBC Bank Middle East Limited 2021. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. No part of this document may be reproduced, stored, distributed or transmitted in any form without prior written permission of HSBC Bank Middle East Limited.

MARKET NEWS

Emirates NBD joins hands with AFIN as a founding industry partner for its global fintech registry Global FinTech registry, ChekFIN to assist financial institutions in easy identification and evaluation of FinTechs for potential collaborations

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mirates NBD has announced its association with ASEAN Financial Innovation Network (AFIN), as a member and as an industry partner to support its global fintech registry, ChekFIN. Created in collaboration with Boston Consulting Group FinTech Control Tower (BCG FCT) and Temasek-founded Affinidi, ChekFIN was officially launched at the Singapore FinTech Festival 2021.

Scheduled to go live on 01 December 2021, the registr y will provide a decentralised, open standard, and trustbased solution enabling and empowering financial institutions to reduce the amount of time spent searching for and assessing a suitable partner firm.

The platform includes unique features such as a comprehensive taxonomy and tagging system to facilitate easy search, easy access to aggregated and relevant information on firms in a single place. A key feature of the platform is the use of Verifiable Credentials

(VCs), cryptographically secure digital certificates, to assess the digital reputation and credibility of various FinTechs. Emirates NBD is one of the ten global pioneer industry partners working with APIX to issue the first set of VCs. The presence of a global registry where consolidated information on vetted FinTechs is readily available, will benefit financial institutions by bringing greater connectivity in the Fintech ecosystem, thus enabling smoother and more reliable collaborations.

Commenting on the announcement, Miguel Rio Tinto, Group Chief Information Officer, Emirates NBD said, “As a leading banking group in the region, Emirates NBD is always looking for opportunities for innovative collaboration in and outside the region. Exploring partnerships with FinTechs can have a big impact on enhancing the financial services industry through their innovative capabilities, business models and cutting-edge solutions that can help enhance customer

WE ARE DELIGHTED TO SUPPORT AFIN, FOR ITS GROUND-BREAKING NEW PLATFORM, WHICH ACTS AS A CREDIBLE REGISTRY OF FINTECH FIRMS 8

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

Miguel Rio Tinto Group Chief Information Officer, Emirates NBD

experience. However, onboarding FinTech partners comes with its set of complex challenges including a long lead time and regulatory and compliance hurdles. We are delighted to support AFIN, for its groundbreaking new platform, which acts as a credible registry of FinTech firms.”

He added, “As we continue to lead innovation in digital banking in the region, we see this as an important milestone in our long-term digital strategy. We will continue to contribute to the growth of the FinTech start-up ecosystem and pave the way for more collaborations between financial institutions and FinTechs across the globe.”

Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, said, “Emirates NBD joining ChekFIN as a pioneer partner from the MENA region shows their transformational approach in engaging with FinTechs and innovation enablers. As a pioneer partner, it will contribute to the development of this new game-changing engagement mode, leading to accelerated and sustainable innovation.

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MARKET NEWS

Mashreq signs strategic MoU with Dubai South to support SMEs Mashreq and Dubai South’s strategic partnership will financial platforms and infrastructures will offer help to SME’s and so add to the strength of the local digital economy

Ahmed Abdelaal Group CEO Mashreq Bank and H.E. Khalifa Al Zaffin Executive Chairman of Dubai Aviation City Corporation and Dubai South

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ashreq has entered a strategic partnership with Dubai’s largest single urban master development, Dubai South, with a remit to build banking and financial solutions for its aviation and logistics ecosystem.

The partnership sets out to develop and deploy digitally advanced financial platforms and infrastructures to support the SME ecosystem and value chains across the development. Dubai South provides entrepreneurs and growing businesses with enormous potential

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for investment and expansion thanks to its position as a global transport hub and as a major contributor to the economic growth of Dubai and the United Arab Emirates.

In his comments, H.E. Khalifa Al Zaffin, Executive Chairman of Dubai Aviation City Corporation and Dubai South, said: “The partnership with Mashreq Bank will allow us to develop a strong financial ecosystem that will benefit SMEs that operate out of our well-established facilities. It will also enable us to provide revolutionary financial solutions that

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

would pave the way for our valued clients to take even greater leaps forward and establish themselves as global leaders in their respective fields. Ultimately, we seek to be the preferred choice for investors looking to operate in a well-integrated, economically sound environment. We also strive to be a premier launchpad and international business hub for small and medium-sized businesses, allowing them to connect with international markets through a multi-modal platform.”

Ahmed Abdelaal, Group CEO, Mashreq Bank, said: “By entering into a strategic memorandum of understanding with Dubai South, we are committing Mashreq Bank to lead the creation of an advanced digital banking ecosystem capable of catalysing SME development within and beyond the walls of Dubai South. This is of fundamental importance as we seek to accelerate the potential of digital economy in the country. This partnership comes with the backdrop of Expo 2020, which aims to build a connected robust economy in the country driven by SMEs.” Vikas Thapar, Head of Business Banking and NEOBiz, Mashreq Bank, said: “As part of our strategic partnership, Mashreq will provide Dubai South’s SMEs and its aviation and logistics ecosystem with a robust portfolio of banking and financial solutions. This will allow business owners to focus on kick-starting and scaling up their businesses with ease of access to a variety of benefits, including discounts for accounting packages, cloud infrastructure, digital tools and mobile point-of-sale solutions, all designed with the ultimate aim of supporting their operations.”

SMEs based in Dubai South will benefit from Mashreq Bank’s proprietary support when opening digital bank accounts and from a suite of value-added services, alongside business mentorship. As Dubai South’s key banking partner, Mashreq Bank will also leverage the MoU to explore API integration for business banking onboarding within Dubai South and further afield.

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MARKET OUTLOOK

The near-term outlook for the GCC Gulf countries are diversifying and opening their economies with a strong focus on foreign direct investment, tourism, technology and the financial services sector although they are still heavily reliant on oil revenue

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CC countries are restructuring and opening their economies, rethinking the role of foreign investors as well as SMEs as part of their broader strategy to ease fiscal burdens and do away with heavy reliance on oil revenues. There is a flurry of structural reforms across the region to modernise the legislation and enhance the business environment.

The twin shocks of the COVID-19 pandemic and low oil prices tossed the world economy into the greatest recession since World War II. However, a senior official of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that oil-rich Gulf countries are projected to generate an additional $350 billion in foreign reserves in the next three years amid a rally in oil prices.

Oil prices have soared almost 60% to above $82 a barrel this year as the

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economic recovery from the pandemic and the global rollout of coronavirus vaccines has boosted mobility and stoked energy demand.

“Despite recent turbulence and uncertainty, there is no doubt that the global economy has strongly grown this year, even if the pace is now slowing. 2021 will go down in the economic annals as one of exceptional growth,” said Rasha Badawi, Head of Barclays Private Bank in the UAE. Though most Arabian Gulf countries including Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Oman are still reliant on oil and gas—which accounts for 70% of their total goods exports and total revenues— the governments are diversifying and opening their economies with a strong focus on foreign direct investment, tourism, technology, and the financial services sectors.

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

Fiscally fit Saudi Arabia, which revised its forecast for this year’s budget deficit to 2.7% of GDP from 4.9% in its preliminary 2022 budget statement, is projecting revenues from its exports of as much as $241 billion in 2022—a 4.5% increase compared to last year’s projections.

To plug its budget deficit, the Gulf state tapped international debt markets with a $5 billion dual-tranche dollardenominated bond in January 2021, a $1.8 billion euro-denominated bond in February and raised $3.25 billion by issuing dual-tranche bonds last month.

Moody’s Investors Service upgraded Saudi Arabia’s outlook to stable from negative in November 2021, citing the country’s ability to reverse most of its 2020 debt increase while preserving fiscal buffers. The rating agency said that it “expected fiscal improvement over the next several years will be facilitated by higher oil prices, although the stable outlook also takes into account the expectation that oil prices will remain volatile.”

The UAE’s cabinet approved its 2022 to 2026 federal budget of $78.96 billion in October 2021 and focused most of next year’s budget of $16 billion on spending on social benefits and development. The Gulf state said that 16% of the budget

will go towards higher education, 6% to social affairs, 8.4% to the health sector and 3.8% to infrastructure and economic resources.

The federal government, which had not issued bonds before, raised $4 billion from its debt capital markets debut after orders for its three-tranche bond deal reached $22.5 billion. UAE’s debt is rated Aa2 by Moody’s Investors Service, the third-highest investment grade and one step lower than the Fitch Ratings level of AA-. Bahrain also unveiled its new economic growth plan targeting $30 billion of investments late in October while hiking VAT to 10% from 5% as part of the Gulf state’s broader strategy to shore up its economy after the devastating impact of coronavirus and balance its budget by 2024. Meanwhile, Qatar recorded a budget surplus of $247 million in Q3 2021, boosting the nine-month surplus this year to $1.3 billion on higher energy prices.

Financial sector

Digital banking GCC banks are pro-innovation and industry experts expect digitalisation to remain a dominate priority across financial services industry as the sector goes more digital. Though digitisation was already apparent across the Gulf region financial services industry, the outbreak of the pandemic accelerated the rate of digital transformation to levels not seen before.

“Digital transformation is no longer a luxury, but a necessity. Banks that are agile, flexible, and willing to transform their business models will be the ones that succeed, and secure their financial strength for future growth,” said KPMG. UAE’s Mashreq Bank and Emirates NBD launched digital-exclusive banks for SMEs, NeoBiz and E20 respectively, in September 2019 to support one of the UAE’s important sectors. The unveiling of digital banks for SMEs came exactly two years after both Mashreq Bank and Emirates NBD

DESPITE RECENT TURBULENCE AND UNCERTAINTY, THERE IS NO DOUBT THAT THE GLOBAL ECONOMY HAS STRONGLY GROWN THIS YEAR, EVEN IF THE PACE IS NOW SLOWING. 2021 WILL GO DOWN IN THE ECONOMIC ANNALS AS ONE OF EXCEPTIONAL GROWTH – Rasha Badawi, Head of Barclays Private Bank in the UAE

had launched Mashreq Neo and Liv., lifestyle digital-only banks that seek to meet the banking needs of millennials.

The country’s first independent digital banking platform, YAP, started operations in August 2021 and it is backed by RAK Bank. Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund ADQ is also considering setting up a digital bank using a legacy banking license of First Abu Dhabi Bank. Zand, the UAE’s first Shari’ah-compliant neobank is expected to open its doors for business soon. It is will be the first fully independent digital bank in the UAE, with a remit to service both retail and corporate customers.

Bahrain’s Bank ABC launched ‘ila Bank’ in 2019 – an AI-powered and data analytics digital-exclusive bank, which started offering credit cards and loans to Bahraini customers in March 2021. They are expected to launch its services in Jordan this year before it expands into Egypt.

Saudi Arabia’s cabinet also gave the Gulf state’s finance ministry the green light to issue licenses for the country’s first digital banks in June 2021. stc pay (stc Bank) will be converted into a digital bank with a capital of $667 million, while the Abdul Rahman bin Saad Al-Rashed and Sons company-led consortium will set up another digital bank (Saudi Digital Bank) with a capital base of $400 million.

Badawi said that the rapid digitisation and ongoing investment in technology is expected to continue.

M&A The GCC financial service sector has weathered several storms over recent years and regional banks have been merging to remain profitable and maintain a competitive edge.

In April 202 1 , S au di Arabia completed the landmark merger between National Commercial Bank and Samba Financial Group into Saudi National Bank (SNB), a banking giant with around $223 billion in assets. SNB is expected to be on equal footing with regional rivals Qatar National Bank and First Abu Dhabi Bank.

The Saudi British Bank (SABB) also completed its takeover of Alawwal Bank in March 2021, creating the third-largest lender in the Gulf state with total assets of $73.7 billion after the two lenders legally merged in June 2019.

Qatari lender Masraf Al Rayan secured shareholders’ approval for its much-anticipated merger with Al Khalij Commercial Bank in October 2021. The tie-up is projected to create the Gulf state’s second-largest bank with an asset base of around $45 billion. It will also create one of the largest Shari’ahcompliant banks in the region.

However, COVID-19 stalled the negotiations on the region’s only cross-border tie-up between Kuwait mea-finance.com

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MARKET OUTLOOK

Finance House and Bahrain’s Ahli United Bank—which was announced in early 2019 but was shelved after the outbreak of the pandemic.

Following the call by Banque du Liban, Lebanon’s central bank, for local lenders to recapitalize by the first quarter of 2021, Bank Audi and Blom Bank put their Egyptian portfolios up for grabs. UAE’s First Abu Dhabi Bank, which acquired Bank Audi Egypt in April 2021, expects to finish merging its Egyptian operation with the newly acquired bank in 2022.

Similarly, Bahrain’s Bank ABC also agreed to acquire Blom Bank Egypt in a deal valued at $427 million and the takeover, which is subject to regulatory approvals in Bahrain, Egypt and Lebanon, is expected to close in Q1 2022.

The GCC regional banking system is reportedly highly fragmented making competition intense. As of 2019, the region had more than 160 banks serving a regional population of 58 million compared with a dozen commercial banks in the UK catering for a population of 66 million.

Diversification drive

UAE G u l f c o u nt r i e s a re p u t t i n g sustainability, which incorporates environmental, social and governance (ESG) concerns at the centre of their economic diversification strategies.

In October, the UAE become the first of the oil-rich Gulf petrostates to commit to eliminating carbon emissions within its borders by 2050. The country also said that it would invest as much as $163 billion in renewable energy as part of its broader strategy to reduce planet-warming emissions and is set to host the COP28 international climate conference in 2023.

“In the wake of the UN’s COP26 climate change conference and ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) to be hosted in the UAE in 2023, building portfolios that can

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capture potential green investment opportunities, while simultaneously guarding against climate risks, will matter for investors in the Middle East,” said Badawi.

The federal government recently introduced programs to shore up investment such as the ‘Make it in the Emirates’ and ‘Operation300bn’, initiatives that are aimed at supporting SMEs for the next 10-years to boost their contribution to the country’s economic output.

Under the ‘Operation300bn’, the government seeks to enhance the industrial sector’s contribution to the UAE’s economic output, from the current $36 billion (AED 133 billion) to $82 billion (AED 300 billion) over the next 10 years.

In a major policy shift, the UAE also said that it would offer Emirati citizenship and passports to a set group of foreigners, including investors, professionals, and special talents. KPMG said that given the economic impact of COVID-19, the move to allow foreign entrepreneurs and investors to fully establish and own companies is a welcome move for new and existing investors and reinforces the country’s appeal as a regional investment hub.

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, also announced in October that it aims to reach zero-net emissions by 2060 through a circular carbon economy approach—a move that aligns the kingdom with most major economies and the that changes scientists say are essential if the world is to avoid the worst effects of global warming.

Under Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia has unveiled several initiatives, including the SAR 5 trillion ($1.34 trillion) Shareek Programme, the national transport and logistics s t ra t e g y, a n d t h e k i n g d o m ’s privatization programme, which is expected to attract as much as $55

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

billion investment in the next four years. Last month, the Gulf state said it has granted citizenship to a group of expatriates including doctors, clerics and academics, becoming the second Gulf Arab state to introduce a formal naturalization programme for foreigners.

Oman Oman has also made significant strides in implementing structural reforms to boost the non-oil economy, drive diversification and spur longterm sustainable growth. Under Sultan Haitham bin Tariq Al Said’s Vision 2040, the Sultanate restructured the government and state entities including the country’s wealth funds and introduced value-added tax (VAT) in April 2021.

Oman merged the State General Res e r ve F u n d a n d t h e O m a n Investment Fund in June 2020 into a new wealth fund Oman Investment Authority, a new entity with $17 billion assets under management. The Sultanate also established a new state-owned energy company, Energy Development Oman, as part of the government’s efforts to use its largest oil block to raise debt. The energy firm owns a 60% interest in Block 6, which is one of the biggest crude deposits in the region and has a production capacity of 650,000 barrels a day.

Oman also announced in June that it would start granting long-term residence visas to foreign investors as part of the country’s wide-ranging reforms to fix its finances.

The significant groundwork which is being laid down in markets and legislation across the Gulf region is expected to drive future growth. The IMF said that it has been monitoring the key changes that have been underway in the landscape for foreign investment and public-private partnerships (PPP) and there is a broad trend of reforms across the region to modernise the legislation and enhance the business environment.

MARKET OUTLOOK

A game of two halves Michael Bolliger Head Emerging Markets at UBS Global Wealth Management surmises that the rising price of goods and services in 2021 will have lingering effects into 2022 and that we can expect opportunities in growing markets such as Greentech, sustainable solutions and enabling technologies

Michael Bolliger Head Emerging Markets at UBS Global Wealth Management

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escribe 2021 from a regional banking and finance perspective, a n d w h a t yo u fe e l was the markets’ most notable achievement.

Obviously, 2021 was an extraordinary year but allow me to point out one of the elements that will stay with us going forward. In 2021, the prices of goods and services rose more than they did in any year since 2008, leading to concerns about the potential impact on consumer

THE ROLE OF ALTERNATIVE ASSETS AND THE ROLE THEY CAN PLAY IN THIS REGARD IS OFTEN UNDERAPPRECIATED

spending, rising interest rates and corporate margins. Much has been said about this but in our base case, we think inflation will fall from currently high levels over the course of 2022, reducing the pressure on consumers, interest rates, and corporations and thus supporting equities.

What is your prediction for the state of the overall regional economy by the end of next year?

We expect a year of two halves. Elevated growth and inflation in the first half will create opportunities in cyclical markets.

But with lower growth and inflation to come in the second half, we also see healthcare, a relatively defensive sector, as well-positioned. Meanwhile, continued low interest rates across most fixed income markets mean many investors will need to re-think their strategy of how to find yield. The role of alternative assets and the role they can play in this regard is often underappreciated. Looking further ahead, the net zero carbon transition and surging technological disruption are proving to be the biggest investment trends of the decade. This brings opportunity in Greentech and sustainable solutions, and in enabling technologies such as artificial intelligence, big data and cybersecurity.

What makes you feel optimistic about 2022?

We expect commodity prices to stabilize in 2022. But many commodity-linked equities have yet to reflect an extended period of high prices. We estimate, for example, that energy stocks are still only factoring in a long-term Brent crude oil price of USD 60/bbl. That should turn out to be good news for those well-positioned Middle Eastern firms operating in that sector. mea-finance.com

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MARKET OUTLOOK

Going Forward Rasha Badawi Head of Barclays Private Bank in the UAE gives MEA Finance her thoughts on the key features and landmark achievements of 2021 and how they provide us with a glimpse into how 2022 will take shape and what some of the lead trends and considerations will be for the regional and wider global markets Rasha Badawi Head of Barclays Private Bank in the UAE

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escribe 2021 from a regional banking and finance perspective, a n d w h a t yo u fe e l was the markets’ most notable achievement.

D e s p i te re c e n t t u r b u l e n c e a n d uncertainty, there is no doubt that the global economy has strongly grown this year, even if the pace is now slowing. 2021 will go down in the economic annals as one of exceptional growth. A mixture of the improving health situation, relaxing of restrictions and ongoing aggressive policy support that allowed the global economy to expand by around 6.1% and emerging markets by 6.8%.

The biggest vaccination programme in history has been the key to the surge in activity, especially in the UAE

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who is leading on global rankings for vaccination rates and where, according to government officials, at least 91 percent of the country´s population has received one dose of the vaccine and 80 per cent has taken both doses. The rapid discovery of vaccines has allowed economies to reopen and activity to resume at speed.

However, this “stop and go”, on a massive scale, has created unprecedented frictions in supply chains and parts of the labour market. As a result, inflation (and increasingly stagflation) fears, as well as concerns over the path of interest rates, are at the centre of the wall of worry that investors are trying to climb. We expect these issues to dominate the narrative next year again, at least in the first half.

While not eradicating the virus, the vaccines have proved to be highly

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

effective in breaking the chain between case numbers and severe illness. Our expectation is that the virus will evolve to become endemic, rather than being arrested. This disruption will continue to affect growth prospects in 2022, when the world is likely to grow robustly although we acknowledge that the peak of the pandemic recovery has passed.

What is your prediction for the state of the overall regional economy by the end of next year?

As the world moves on from the pandemic, 2022 is likely to be characterised by slower economic growth, higher inflation, elevated volatility, and ultimately outperformance of equities over bonds. In this uncertain environment, proper diversification and active

management will remain key to improve portfolio performance.

The first impact will be felt on monetary policies. After doing “whatever it takes” to support their economies, we expect central banks to accompany this transition to the new normal by removing some of the stimuli they introduced during the crisis. This should translate into increased volatility in rates and currencies markets. It will also likely promote more frequent sector rotations and pronounced dispersion in stock markets.

The outlook for inflation will also be a significant influence on equities.

Despite above-trend growth, marginally less accommodative monetary policies may weigh on valuations. As a result, we expect returns on the asset class to be more muted in 2022. In terms of sectors, healthcare and technology will continue to exhibit very attractive long-term growth prospects. However, their performance could be challenged in the short-term should interest rates rise.

But returns and volatility are only part of the equation. In the wake of the UN’s COP26 climate change conference and ahead of the UN Climate Change Conference (COP28) to be hosted in the UAE in 2023, building portfolios that can capture potential green investment opportunities, while simultaneously guarding against climate risks, will matter for investors in the Middle East.

Environmental, social and governance considerations are here to stay, and will likely continue to influence investors’ choices in 2022 and beyond.

They will also potentially play a key role in directing additional government spending, while contributing to volatility in the commodity space as the energy transition gathers pace.

Will the pace of digitisation in banking and finance speed-up, remain about the same or slow down during 2022?

The rapid digitisation and ongoing investment in technology will continue.

As baby boomers slowly transfer their wealth to future generations, the way clients want to deal with their private bankers evolves rapidly. We (and the industry in general) have had to adapt fast to the evolving needs of younger wealth creators and rethink banking given the higher digital engagement seen in the past months, which will continue to redefine relationship management in a digitally connected world.

What will be the main sectors in banking and finance targeted for digitisation in the coming year?

The pandemic has made it clearer that it is increasingly important for private banks to provide a more engaging and personalised digital experience to clients. We have to continue to anticipate and adapt our business model to the

the advantages of building a high quality and diversified portfolio that can stand the test of difficult times. Our message for investors is that being and staying invested continues to make sense, although one should be prepared for more elevated volatility, and potentially slightly lower-than-average returns in 2022.

What makes you feel optimistic about 2022?

D e s p i te re c e n t t u r b u l e n c e a n d uncertainty, there is no doubt that the global economy has grown strongly this year, even if the pace is now slowing. We expect post-lockdown inflation to remain elevated in early 2022, but to ease later in the year as supply bottlenecks and other economic frictions subside.

Starting in 2022, and assuming that

THE OUTLOOK FOR INFLATION WILL ALSO BE A SIGNIFICANT INFLUENCE ON EQUITIES

challenges of these times and respond to the changing needs of our clients.

During this time, we’ve seen lots of clients become new users of our digital offering, connecting to their accounts on their smartphones or PCs to use our transfer, FX and securities online trading capabilities in which we will continue to invest significantly.

How well equipped is the regional financial sector to handle a black swan event in the coming year?

Whilst no one can predict a black swan event, I believe the pandemic has helped investors understand the importance of active management and

vaccine resistant variants don’t spoil the party, we believe that COVID-19’s status will transition from pandemic to endemic, making it akin to the seasonal flu. This process won’t happen overnight, and outbursts of infections are highly likely. But these should only be a marginal drag on global growth, rather than the unprecedented shock seen eighteen months ago.

C o n s i d e r i n g t h e re l a t i ve l y accommodative policy stance, recovery in labour markets and strength of the global consumer, we expect that 2022 will deliver another year of impressive growth, with the global economy growing by 4.5%. mea-finance.com

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MARKET OUTLOOK

Upping the Pace Baber Khan Chief Operations Officer at OCS International Finance Ltd sees the coming year as one where the GCC will perform well and activities such as IPO’s, M&A, positive trends in FDI and business reforms all contributing to an upward swing in sentiment

D

escribe 2021 from a regional banking and finance perspective, a n d w h a t yo u fe e l was the markets’ most notable achievement.

There has been a focus on costs and efficiencies which when coupled with the increased digitization of processes, has helped provide a more sustainable foundation of growth for the future. It has also helped the regional banks deliver positive results Q-o-Q in 2021.

Subsequently they were better able to respond to the impact of Covid 19 and the resulting government and central bank actions.

2021 saw a shift in sentiment towards digital assets and cryptocurrency related services. This has been on the back of adoption b l o c kc h a i n te c h n o l o g y led by governments in the region with the central banks of Bahrain, UAE and Saudi Arabia forming committees to oversee the Baber Khan Chief Operations Officer at OCS International Finance Ltd

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Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

implementation of CBDC (Central Bank Digital Currencies). Rules and Regulations are being formatted by regional regulators (e.g., ADGM) to meet the growing retail and institutional appetite for digital currencies. We have already had the launch of the first Bitcoin fund on Nasdaq Dubai and a Digital Asset Exchange obtaining investment from an Abu Dhabi sovereign wealth fund entity. We are seeing increased interest and excitement over the potential of digital currencies in the region.

What is your prediction for the state of the overall regional economy by the end of next year?

The regional economies of the GCC will naturally benefit from the higher oil prices and increased government spending/investment and coupled with the lessons learnt from Global Financial Crisis in 2008, will be more resilient to sudden shocks. Reforms related to ease of business, easing of Covid 19 restrictions, return of global trade and tourism driven by a successful vaccination programme all augurs well for the economy and this makes me very optimistic for the year ahead. Unfortunately, this optimism is tempered by what is happening in Europe currently with COVID and a possible domino effect. Regional peripheral economies of the GCC i.e., Iraq and LEVANT region will continue to suffer from the impact of Covid and political instability.

Do you expect the pace of IPO’s, M&A, equity and debt issuance and general capital markets activity differ in 2022?

The pace in 2021 is expected to continue,

especially in equities with the IPO listing of government owned entities such a DEWA and Salik in Dubai and some family-owned businesses too. M&A activity has remained buoyant in 2021 with the trend set to continue into 2022 with activity in technology, energy, and utilities anticipated to continue. FDI into the region has also seen a growing trend which has led to the to the first SPAC (Special Purpose Acquisition Company) transactions emanating from the region i.e., Anghami (music streaming business, based out of Abu Dhabi) and Swvl (ride hailing firm operating in MENA, based out of Dubai). As the economic outlook has improved, supported by higher energy prices and low rates, debt issuances in 2022 is anticipated continue the positive trend of 2021. The stabilizing macroeconomic picture would offer investors and lenders comfort when regional oil related economies look to refinancing and pushing out maturities whilst locking in lower pricing and rates.

Will the pace of digitisation in banking and finance speed-up, remain about the same or slow down during 2022?

The experience of pandemic in 2020 and the global focus on digitization was a trigger for regional banks to fast track their digitization plans to avoid being left behind, and partnerships with FinTech firms and the adoptions of API’s, not remotely a consideration a few years ago, were embraced. Regional banks have adapted quickly and become more flexible not just due to customer demand but also by government measures to push digitization in government services.

2022 and onwards will show continued investment with Buy Now and Pay Later entering the market and challengers in the form of neobanks, the presence of regulatory sandboxes in the region is also driving FinTechs into diverse verticals such as wealth management and insurance, payments which is setting the tone to regional banks to adapt and recognize the growth in digitization.

What will be the main sectors in banking and finance targeted for digitisation in the coming year?

The main sectors will be on retail and SMEs with primary focus on the latter.

The target will be young entrepreneurs /start-ups who find dealing with a regular bank alien and whose needs at the outset are very basic until their operations can develop economies of scale. Digital account opening and services to SME’s is the area of growth and development driven to a large extent by government policies and incentives. Supporting e-commerce,

an incentive to the regional banks to be better prepared for sudden shocks. The reaction of the Regional Governments and Financial Sector to the outbreak of Covid 19 in 2020 was very impressive and should provide an element of comfort that they can manage the next unforeseen event.

What makes you feel optimistic about 2022?

The GCC economies are anticipated to return to their pre Covid 19 GDP growth rates which will have a positive impact on overall sentiment and business activity

THE PACE IN 2021 IS EXPECTED TO CONTINUE, ESPECIALLY IN EQUITIES WITH THE IPO LISTING OF GOVERNMENT OWNED ENTITIES SUCH A DEWA AND SALIK IN DUBAI AND SOME FAMILY-OWNED BUSINESSES TOO

given the growth it has experienced in 2020, is also encouraging regional banks to offer payment services via in-house offering or through collaborations with registered FinTechs.

How well equipped is the regional financial sector to handle a black swan event in the coming year?

Black swan events are by definition impossible to predict and consequently more difficult to prepare for. The current balance sheets and capital structures are robust amongst banks in the GCC to withstand any unforeseen circumstances with the expectation of possible intervention from the respective central banks. The impact of the GFC was a lesson and provided

however, there are the headwinds of inflation and global supply chain issues that need to be negotiated. With global focus on climate change the regional governments and banks are looking to execute their bold sustainability and ESG plans which brings with it more exciting opportunities and areas of investment. On the subject of digital assets and crypto currencies, the optimism experienced in 2021 is expected to continue with the UAE being at the forefront of new technologies and innovation. UAE efforts to be a hub for digital asset service providers is a trigger for further activity in the space but also addressing some of the apprehensions and misconceptions related to digital currencies. mea-finance.com

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MARKET OUTLOOK

A Broadly Positive Journey Ahead Looking back on 2021, Rajesh Singhi Managing Director, Regional Head of M&A and Investment Banking at Standard Chartered Bank, notes that it has been a landmark year for deals with volumes matching all of 2020 by September this year, and when looking forward into the next twelve months, he surmises that some individually unique factors that will assist some of the larger GCC economies, while other will take longer to emerge from deficit Rajesh Singhi Managing Director, Regional Head of M&A and Investment Banking at Standard Chartered Bank

D

escribe 2021 from a regional banking and finance perspective, a n d w h a t yo u fe e l was the markets’ most notable achievement.

Despite the uneven economic recovery, we have witnessed in different regions across the globe, and the supply-chain disruptions that became a common phenomenon, the industry witnessed several noticeable achievements throughout 2021.

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One of the most notable of these achievements would be how well markets recovered from the deal activity slump that took place during the peak of the COVID-19 global pandemic. 2021 has been a landmark year for the region with year-to-date September deal volumes already comparable to the full year volumes of 2020. Year-to-date Mergers and Acquisition volumes recorded c.US 70 billion dollars, almost equivalent to the whole of the year in 2020. Growth in the equity capital market is even more

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

astonishing with equity issuance up to the third quarter of 2021, more than doubling as compared to the same period last year. Sovereign and private entities alike continue to take advantage of the high liquidity currently available with debt and equity issuances.

Another noticeable achievement is the uptick in inbound mergers and acquisitions. At US 25 billion dollars year-to-date, deal volumes are close to double those of 2019. We have seen strong interest in the region from private

investors and financial sponsors, with the most prominent deal among them being the Aramco oil pipeline transaction where Standard Chartered Bank played a leading role.

What is your prediction for the state of the overall regional economy by the end of next year?

Our team of experts, at Standard Chartered Bank believe that central bank bond purchase tapering and rising expectations of policy rate hikes across the developed economies are signs of growing confidence in the recovery of the economy. As such, it is my belief that the economic recovery witnessed post the Covid-19 global pandemic in the region will continue on throughout 2022.

Furthermore, the strengthening in oil prices we are currently witnessing is expected to continue and this will definitely help the regional economies.

Various GCC countries also have very high vaccination rates, with high-risk individuals also being offered booster shots, and so far, we have been able to avert another wave of Covid -19, unfortunately something which European countries have been unable to do in recent months.

It is worth noting that some regional economies have fared better than others. The pace of change we are seeing in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia is unprecedented, while the United Arab Emirates continues to be the leader in attracting foreign capital investments into the region, especially with Expo 2020 currently taking place, which is one of the world’s biggest events, and that has attracted visitors from all over the globe. The United Arab Emirates non-oil business activity also recently jumped to a two-year high in October (according to IHS Markit’s Purchasing Managers Index) and the benefit of Expo 2020 is expected to be sustained into next year as well.

Additionally, net zero and sustainability commitments from both the Kingdom

GOVERNMENT ENTITIES AND SOVEREIGN WEALTH FUNDS ARE THE DRIVING FORCE BEHIND A NUMBER OF MARQUEE DEALS IN THE REGION AND WE EXPECT THEM TO CONTINUE TO REMAIN ACTIVE IN 2022

of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates will continue to drive non-oil business and GDP growth.

The Qatari economy will also benefit from higher oil prices too, as well as from the FIFA 2022 world cup soccer championships, while the Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain economies are projected to remain in budget deficit throughout 2022 and up until 2023, albeit with lower deficits as compared to the peak of Covid19 pandemic.

Do you expect the pace of IPO’s, M&A, equity and debt issuance and general capital markets activity differ in 2022?

We do expect to see strong investment

AS SUCH, IT IS MY BELIEF THAT THE ECONOMIC RECOVERY WITNESSED IN THE REGION POST THE COVID-19 GLOBAL PANDEMIC, WILL CONTINUE THROUGHOUT 2022

banking volumes next year in 2022.

At Standard Chartered Bank, we are in advanced stages of a number of high value deals which we hope to be announcing between now and the first half (H1) of next year. Government entities and Sovereign Wealth Funds are the driving force behind a number of marquee deals in the region and we expect them to continue to remain active in 2022.

However, it is worth highlighting that we believe sustainability deals will receive more attention in capital markets, especially following on from the recent COP26 event held in Glasgow, UK. Even though there is still much more to do on this front, the segment is witnessing more interest from financial sponsors with sustainability as a specific focus and we expect to see still more activity in this area.

As for the sectors that are expected to witness the most activity in a post Covid-19 pandemic world, ‘hard asset’ sectors with predictable cashflows will continue to attract investors. In addition, we expect to see consumer and technology sectors benefit and drive greater market activities, especially as the world continues to reopen.

However, higher than expected inflation rates, especially in the United States of America, leading to a hawkish Federal Reserve and the recent surge in Covid-19 cases, particularly the new Omicron variant, are potential headwinds for the industry going forward. mea-finance.com

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TRADE FINANCE

Charting a new course for trade finance Macro headwinds such as the post pandemic, trade wars and cross-border tariffs are creating the conditions that will force the evolution of new processes that could see new players bypassing or disintermediating banks in the global trade finance market

W

ith COVID-19 continuing to challenge different economic sectors across the world, the blistering pace of vaccine rollouts in the Middle East is spurring recovery momentum in the region despite pandemic-related supply chain bottlenecks that are threatening to choke volumes of global trade.

The prolonged pandemic and the plunge in global oil demand and prices dealt the GCC countries a health crisis and a commodity market shock. However, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) projected that the economies of the six oil-rich Gulf nations, which contracted by

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an average of 4.8% in 2020, will grow by an average of 2.5% this year and an even bigger 4.2% growth in 2022.

A re c e n t st u d y by t h e As i a n Development Bank (ADB) estimated that the gap in trade finance availability reached $1.7 trillion in 2020, representing 10% of global trade. McKinsey said that the global trade disruptions that were fuelled by the coronavirus are believed to have exacerbated this shortfall and the need to improv the $5.2 trillion global trade finance ecosystem, which facilitates the movement of goods and services around the world, has become more evident.

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

Macro headwinds such as health crises, climate change, trade wars and cross-border tariffs and sanctions together with greater competitive pressure, increased cost burdens and a technology-driven shift from traditional trade services are placing a strain on the profitability of trade finance. Combined, these threats are creating a perfect storm of changes that may see banks bypassed, displaced and disintermediated in the global trade market.

However, the ongoing transformation of trade finance offers banks a valuable opportunity to transform their operations and reimagine how they can facilitate and finance trade with no constraints and no legacy baggage.

Against a backdrop of the increasing digitisation of financial and commercial services, trade finance has been relatively slow to modernize its decadesold processes. It remains a very paperheavy and manual business making it particularly costly for banks to serve smaller enterprises, but digitalising trade finance to serve new markets more effectively will be an important driver as the global economy rebounds. “The

evolution of global trade threatens a steady income source for banks unless they can understand and adapt to change,” said EY. The acceleration of digitisation being driven by the pandemic has been so widereaching that there’s no looking back.

It is companies that are successfully implementing digital solutions in global trade that are finding themselves at an advantage amid a myriad of challenges.

Ac c o rd i n g to i n d u st r y a n a l ysts , incremental solutions provide a base upon which every corporate can build as they work towards the end-to-end full digitization of trade.

“To fully reap the benefits of new technologies, the entire trade ecosystem including financial institutions, regulators, border agencies, trade bodies and corporates should cooperate to apply digital innovation and drive efficiencies,” said the World Bank.

For corporates, funding challenges are particularly a thorny issue especially small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), a sector that is a cornerstone of Middle East economies, accounting for more than 90% of all businesses and driving regional countries’ economic diversification away from heavy reliance on oil revenues.

“The SME sector is the bedrock of any economy and equally so in the UAE. It is imperative that banks support them with access to trade finance as cashflow can make or break a business,” Ali Imran, the Head of Transaction Banking & Wholesale Digital Services at the Commercial Bank of Dubai.

Digitising trade finance The banks that provide trade finance were already at the forefront of innovation and digital transformation well before the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic.

The COVID-19 crisis arrived during a transformative period for trade finance, largely through digitisation and the emergence of new platforms.

T h e p a n d e m i c c re a te d s o m e exceptional challenges for all industries,

but it also created unique opportunities especially in the financial service sector by accelerating and strengthening the transition towards digital banking at unprecedented speeds.

“Just like 2008-2009 saw an exponential behaviour shift in the adoption of online commerce, 2020-2021 is witnessing a similar shift in how trade finance works,” said Imran.

Although travel and movement restrictions to curb the spread of the pandemic took a heavy toll on global trade and the industry that finances it, a commerce-led recovery has sparked a rebound in trade finance this year. To capture business opportunities amid

and cloud computing, is driving the rise of platforms and what is now referred to as the platform economy. The platform economy is reshaping global trade as most valuable entities are now based on platform business models such as digital marketplaces that enable groups to interact and transact, said the World Trade Organisation (WTO).

The use of blockchain in global trade makes it possible for documentation to flow transparently and securely between banks, trading companies and other network participants such as insurance companies.

“A blockchain-based infrastructure will drive efficiencies, reduce the cost base and open up new revenue opportunities,”

TO FULLY REAP THE BENEFITS OF NEW TECHNOLOGIES, THE ENTIRE TRADE ECOSYSTEM INCLUDING FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS, REGULATORS, BORDER AGENCIES, TRADE BODIES, AND CORPORATES SHOULD COOPERATE TO APPLY DIGITAL INNOVATION AND DRIVE EFFICIENCIES – The World Bank

growing competition from non-traditional providers, industry experts said that banks in the Middle East region should ramp up their digital transformation and innovate their products and operating models.

Technology is also helping shape trade facilitation as more self-funding and investment from institutional investors flow into the corporate supply chain.

“Many global trade finance banks have already started to invest in digitalisation, with technologies such as optical character recognition (OCR), artificial intelligence and blockchain being used to develop innumerable use cases and proofs of concept,” said EY. Digital technologies, which includes blockchain, Big Data, new algorithms

Subramanian Krishnamurthy, the Head Global Transaction Services at National Bank of Fujairah said in an exclusive with MEA Finance adding that blockchain technology promises to increase collaboration, automation and oversight in trade finance transactions.

Blockchain has the potential to empower global trade and banks that finance it by making transactions more efficient while retaining a high level of security. It has the potential to digitalise trade and trade finance processes. WTO said DLT could be to trade and trade finance transactions what the internet has been to communication.

The WTO in a November 2021 report said that cross-border trade activities entail complex risks, particularly linked to mea-finance.com

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foreign transactions and legal procedures.

Meanwhile, ADB identified know your customer (KYC) and anti-money laundering (AML) concerns, which become amplified when transacting in multiple jurisdictions, as the eminent reason for rejections of SME financing. The multilateral development bank said 20% of trade finance applications for SMEs are rejected due to a lack of additional collateral.

However, blockchain is poised to facilitate the digitisation of trade finance and eliminate the pain points of today’s processes. Blockchain also possesses several key benefits to the parties involved including tokenisation of assets such as collaterals, transferring digital assets, preventing double-spending and forgery and rendering payments and other processes automatic.

Leveraging blockchain technology allows for all transactions to be unalterably timestamped and uniquely cryptographically signed, reducing paper waste and introducing a new approach to identity management.

Imran tells MEA Finance that the Central Bank of the UAE, the People’s Bank of China, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the Bank of Thailand recently joined forces to explore the possibility to make blockchain-based central bank digital currency (CBDC) interoperable to facilitate cross-border trade based on blockchain technology.

“Preliminary findings showcased a reduction in transaction costs and an increase in speed,” said Imran.

A global perspective Trade is the lifeblood of the global e c o n o my. I t b o osts g row t h a n d competitiveness, promotes fairness while driving growth innovation and efficiency.

“With the pandemic taking its toll on global trade and supply chain, the priority for economic recovery is to mobilise capabilities and resources to trade flows back on track,” said Krishnamurthy.

Trade finance is the backbone of global trade, without it, the movement of goods and services across borders

THE SME SECTOR IS THE BEDROCK OF ANY ECONOMY AND EQUALLY SO IN THE UAE. IT IS IMPERATIVE THAT BANKS SUPPORT THEM WITH ACCESS TO TRADE FINANCE AS CASHFLOW CAN MAKE OR BREAK A BUSINESS – Ali Imran Head of Transaction Banking & Wholesale Digital Services at the Commercial Bank of Dubai

does not occur. By providing liquidity and cash flows and lowering risks, financial institutions ensure that buyers receive their goods and sellers receive their payments, said the World Bank.

Traditionally, trade finance is dominated by global banks including HSBC Holdings, Citigroup, Standard Chartered and the National Bank of Fujairah plus the National Bank of Kuwait and Saudi National Bank in the Middle East. However, the market is attracting investment from fintechs, capital market and institutional investors amid a growing trend of more self-funding.

Dubai Multi Commodities Centre in its ‘Future of Trade 2020 Report’ said that more than 80% of executives at medium to large-sized businesses in the UK, the US and China were considering switching from traditional banks to alternative lenders for trade finance.

Though the pandemic-induced economic collapse did not translate into the reduction in the liquidity of the global financial crisis of 2008, COVID-19 forced banks to focus their funding on established relationships. The so-called “flight to quality” left many worthy businesses especially particularly SMEs in the emerging markets without an option for trade finance.

Driving growth in GCC The weak global economy over the last few years has been an outcome of the trade wars between the world’s biggest economies, the US and China, Brexit, sluggish growth in international trade compounded by the coronavirus and the countries in the Middle East are not

immune to these challenges.

However, the initiatives that were introduced by banks and corporates in the Middle East minimised the fallout on the much needed and over-burdened supply chain across the region. Earlier this year, HSBC issued the first green trade finance facility in the MENA region, raising $48 million for UAE-based Lamprell to support execution of the company’s fabrication work on the Seagreen Offshore Wind Farm project off the coast of Scotland.

Wall street bank, Citigroup, said in October 2021 that it is considering pursuing a banking license in Saudi Arabia to further boost its business in the Gulf state by expanding into trade finance and treasury solutions.

To mitigate risks associated with global trade, GCC export credit companies such as UAE’s Etihad Credit Insurance (ECI) are introducing initiatives that are aimed at easing access to financing for exporters and re-exporters in the regional while supporting the growth of SMEs. ECI collaborates with several banks in the UAE including Emirates NBD, NBF and Standard Chartered Bank UAE and its insurance cover enables SMEs to obtain collateralised loans form banks within the country.

The federal export credit company unveiled ‘UAE Trade Finance Gateway’ in partnership with First Abu Dhabi Bank and Crediti Fintech in October 2021— a project that seeks to position as the main gateway of exporters and re-exporters to trade finance solutions that will be provided by commercial banks and financial institutions. mea-finance.com

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TRADE FINANCE

Smoothing the Path Ali Imran Head of Transaction Banking & Wholesale Digital Services, CBD tells MEA Finance that trade finance is experiencing significant changes, with easier ways and means by which it is conducted and with considerations such as ESG and digitisation taking bigger roles in its processes Ali Imran Head of Transaction Banking & Wholesale Digital Services, CBD

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s were other parts of the financial markets, was the digitisation of trade finance accelerated by the global pandemic?

U n t i l re c e n t l y, a m a j o r p a r t of international trade was conducted using paper letters of credit and bills of lading. However, the pandemic has significantly helped accelerate digitization of trade finance which is a trend we consider irreversible.

J u s t l i ke 2 0 0 8 -2 0 0 9 s a w a n exponential behavior shift in the adoption of online commerce, 20202021 is witnessing a similar shift in how trade finance works. For example, Letters of credit (LCs) used to be frequently impacted by delays in the delivery of goods and remote document inspections. However, we have now seen clients move towards online solutions to ensure LCs are issued quickly and trade continues to be properly funded. This

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is partially helped by developments such as legally binding e-signatures to keep funding flowing, guidance being published (globally) on the acceptance of e-signatures and an increase in risk appetite to the new normal-e.g., not needing to see physical paperwork.

There has also been an increase in bank-fintech partnerships within the realm of trade and supply chain finance. This includes CBD’s recent fintech partnership with Demica, a fintech based in London, resulting in a fully digital supplier and buyer led solution. This move towards fully digital transaction and document processing, will drive the emergence of a new era of paperless trade.

Do you expect more use of Blockchain based methods, such as CBDC’s being adopted in trade finance?

I think its important to clarify that there

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

are two types of CBDC’s: a) retail which is a digital equivalent complement to physical banknotes or coins and b) interbank which is accessible to financial institutions to settle transactions. Within interbank, there are two ways to drive adoption: either it is mandated, or it is so intuitive to use that all parties want to adopt the technology. According to the Bank of International Settlement, more than 80% of Central Banks around the world are studying the feasibility of interbank CBDC use-cases. The development of this form of CBDC will clearly accelerate the integration of distributed ledger technologies into existing market infrastructures.

In fact, the People’s Bank of China has combined with the Hong Kong Monetary Authority, the Bank of Thailand and the Central Bank of the UAE to explore the possibility to make CBDC interoperable to facilitate cross-border trade based on blockchain technology. Preliminary

findings showcased a reduction in transaction costs and an increase in speed. However, these benefits can only be commercialized at scale once CBDC’s are placed under some sort of regulatory safeguard that is commensurate to its role in the global financial system.

JUST LIKE 2008-2009 SAW AN EXPONENTIAL BEHAVIOR SHIFT IN THE ADOPTION OF ONLINE COMMERCE, 20202021 IS WITNESSING A SIMILAR SHIFT IN HOW TRADE FINANCE WORKS

Do you expect to see changes in the way letters of credit and promissory notes will be used?

The volume of promissory notes is increasing by an average of 15% per annum. We are witnessing these types of transactions being increasingly handled through digital platforms. In the recent past, some of the largest transactions were conducted digitally (t h e Lu f t h a n s a g ro u p c o l l e ct i n g 800M euros being a key example).

This increase in digitization of notes is because the traditional process of setting up a promissory note is highly cumbersome. It requires a multitude of analog interactions and is expensive in nature. Hence, the simplicity of a digital platform and the transparent nature of pricing drives its increased adoption.

We have already seen a successful pilot of promissory note transactions on private block-chains with the certification performed using a qualified electronic signature. There is still a long way to go; for example, the transfer and termination of promissory notes is yet to be digitized. We do expect to see more changes in the way letters of credit and promissory notes are used especially with more bank–fintech partnerships driving this change. These partnerships will bring a digital, efficient, cost saving process combined with the scale and size of the banking network to reach the widest possible audience.

Would you say that SMEs in the region have equal access to trade finance as do larger corporations?

The SME sector is the bedrock of any economy and equally so in the UAE. It

is imperative that banks support them with access to trade finance as cashflow can make or break a business. Access to finance in this sector requires a specialized approach which expedites the assessment and decision-making process. Specialization is imperative because certain cases require additional

SPECIALIZATION IS IMPERATIVE BECAUSE CERTAIN CASES REQUIRE ADDITIONAL FIXED ASSETS, REPAYMENT HISTORY, BALANCE SHEET OR COLLATERAL WHICH ARE NOT ALWAYS AVAILABLE fixed assets, repayment history, balance sheet or collateral which are not always available. The solution, potentially, is to offer solutions on a non-recourse basis; however, this requires a more sophisticated insurance market and rates which are acceptable to small

businesses. This is a key challenge in the wider GCC that needs to be solved through a collaboration of all stakeholders.

How are banks going to factor ESG considerations into their trade finance operations?

Consumers and corporates alike are increasingly focusing on environmental and sustainability practices when making financial decisions. In fact, consumer demand for ethically and sustainably sourced products has led more and more businesses to consider incorporating environmental, social and governance factors into their trade and finance decisions. This is an outcome of the fact that sustainable practices are now at the forefront of brand strategies as they seek to address concerns of environmentally aware client bases. From a trade perspective, in the automotive industry, for example, attention is focused on looking into reconfiguring supply chains to switch to EVs instead of the traditional combustion vehicles.

It is incumbent on banks to commit to lend and facilitate the allocation of capital towards green initiatives which focus on a reduction of the environmental impact. However, banks would require industry standards to be set-up and robust benchmarks to be created, which would help encourage companies to adopt ESG practices and provide tangible proof that ‘going green’ will result in material benefits to their business as well as the environment. mea-finance.com

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TRADE FINANCE

Changing with the times A According to Dave Aldred Head of Treasury and Trade, Citi, MENA, the market is going to witness developments including the increasing adoption of technology, with greater use of blockchain and digitisation of processes, along with the implementation of strategies to assist SME’s with access to funding, and efforts made to help trade finance play a bigger role in efforts to curb climate change

s were other parts of the financial markets, was the digitisation of trade finance accelerated by the global pandemic?

In the period before the onset of the pandemic Citi had already seen a move by our clients towards leveraging digital solutions and supply chain finance as a classic example of digitising the end-toend process. However, the lockdowns and disruption to logistics and supply chains including couriers having the ability to deliver physical documents from one point to the other, resulted in clients being more open minded and willing to rethink their digitization strategies and to adopt digital tools such as e-signatures, CitiDirect BE etc. What we are seeing now is that organisations are now using the experience gained during the pandemic to reengineer their trade processes and imbed digital tools. Additionally, building in pre pandemic momentum, the continued disruption to supply chains has meant that supply chain finance has accelerated with additional momentum and has firmly become a solution where corporates can now get a much-needed working capital benefit. As a result, we have seen a significant increase in the digitisation of trade business and in our experience, MENA is a world leader when compared to some other regions.

Do you expect more use of Blockchain based methods, such as CBDC’s being adopted in trade finance?

Dave Aldred Head of Treasury and Trade, Citi, MENA

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Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

Blockchain is gaining in prevalence

rapidly with systems like KOMGO and others too, whereby a marketplace or platform is created which allows financers, exporters and buyers to come together to intermediate trade. It is a certainty that these systems will grow in number and will be driven largely by their ability to provide ease of usage, flexibility and integration within the major banks. As standards become more robust and organisations learn from their experience about the ability to manage flows for certain ecosystems, the use and leveraging blockchain technologies is more likely to grow.

CITI’S TRADE TEAMS ARE WORKING TO PROVIDE CAPITAL WHERE BORROWERS CAN ACHIEVE MORE COMPETITIVE PRICING FOR CAPITAL TO BE DEPLOYED TOWARDS PROJECTS FOCUSED ON ESG WHERE THE PROGRESS CAN BE AND IS MEASURED

Do you expect to see changes in the way letters of credit and promissory notes will be used?

Letters of Credit (LCs) and Promissory Notes are necessary instruments which have been around as an important part of the process for many years. They are required for those markets where the risks of non-payment are viewed as high

WHAT WE ARE SEEING IS THAT ORGANISATIONS ARE NOW USING THE EXPERIENCE GAINED DURING THE PANDEMIC TO REENGINEER THEIR TRADE PROCESSES AND IMBED DIGITAL TOOLS and where beneficiaries such as sellers, want surety of payment for their products.

For as long as those risks remain, I do not see the need for LCs diminishing.

LCs are now being digitized so while the need for paper-based documentation is reducing, it does not necessarily mean that the instruments will be eradicated completely. So, LCs will remain extremely relevant, but they will also see increased digitisation to drive the efficiency of the end-to-end process.

Would you say that SMEs in the region have equal access to trade finance as do larger corporations?

Unfortunately, no I would not. It is widely accepted that SMEs are seen as having a higher risk profile by the traditional financial institutions. This coupled with the fact that SMEs are either not resourced to produce the type of financials major banks would like to see, or do not have the volume of flows to attract the attention of major banks. They have historically not been able to attract the kind of funding from a pricing or quantum perspective that large corporates can command.

Additionally, SMEs are also seen as having limited requirements which may not necessarily fit within the model of large banks looking to attract or service clients with multiple cross sell opportunities.

However, given the importance of working capital management within supply chain ecosystems, access to trade finance and funding in general is critical for SMEs. As a result, some governments in the region have implemented strategies to assist SMEs who are a very important

element of the economy. The United Arab Emirates Central Bank support to SMEs via the National SME Program is a clear case in point.

How are banks going to factor ESG considerations into their trade finance operations?

ESG is a key business priority for Citi. Banks are already implementing specific goals and targets to ensure compliance towards achieving net zero by a certain date. Citi’s Trade teams are working to provide capital where borrowers can achieve more competitive pricing for capital to be deployed towards projects focused on ESG where the progress can be and is measured. Similarly, Export Credit Agencies and Multilaterals have also come out with specific policies that puts a stop to the support for those business and industry sectors that are considered dirty or polluting, such as coal for example. The International Finance Corporation, IFC has come out with CLIMATE SMART, whereby they will support banks in the world’s emerging markets who are looking to provide LCs, price incentives of longer terms for equipment specifically bought to address climate change, such as wind turbines, solar panels etc., or for projects that are guaranteed under the Global Trade Finance Programme that have clearly defined environmental benefits.

Additionally, we have also seen a growth in corporate appetites for sustainable supply chain finance programs and expect this to grow to become a higher priority for corporations going forward. mea-finance.com

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TRADE FINANCE

Facing the changes in Trade Finance Subramanian Krishnamurthy Head - Global Transaction Services at National Bank of Fujairah details recent conditions and new developments that have shaped and are helping to improve the processes and efficiency of trade finance

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Subramanian Krishnamurthy Head Global Transaction Services at National Bank of Fujairah

an you please share what the main changes that the trade finance has gone through in recent years?

Since its inception in 1982, NBF has positioned itself as a global trade services provider in the UAE, serving as a one-stop shop to provide all import and export requirements for businesses.

The bespoke services we offer clients derive from an in-depth understanding of their working capital and term financing needs. Our leadership position in the space has enabled us to stay abreast of fast-evolving developments and respond to them to better serve our clients. As an acknowledgement to our efforts on enhancing the role of business enablers NBF was awarded the “Best Trade Finance Provider” awards at the MEA Finance 2021 Awards.

Over the years, we have witnessed the trade finance industry undergo a transformational journey towards digitisation and innovation with the emergence of new technologies such as blockchain. Nevertheless, the Covid-19 pandemic remains the most impactful, yet unforeseen event that has impacted and will continue to impact stakeholders operating in trade finance.

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With the pandemic taking its toll on global trade and supply chain, the priority for economic recovery is to mobilise capabilities and resources to trade flows back on track. Private and public partnerships will be critical to making this happen and working together to close any financing gaps. Offering financing support to SMEs is a key priority towards this end especially in the UAE as these businesses generate 70% of national GDP. In this regard, NBF will continue to work with corporates and SMEs to meet their needs and extend its unmatched expertise in trade finance to support the national economy.

Can you share with us NBF’s digital strategy and how the bank is progressing towards it?

Being in the UAE is an impetus to any bank or business to ensure they have a digital-focused strategy; the country and its leadership have anticipated the need to embark on the digital transformation journey ahead of many others. At NBF, the transition to further digitisation started long before the pandemic and is now accelerating, making digital the preferred choice for customers.

In 2020, we acted swiftly and invested in new products and services as we

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

looked at increasing efficiency, helping businesses overcome Covid-19 related constraints, and broadening our customer base especially focusing on segments of the population that spend more time on digital channels.

To date, more than 80 per cent of the bank’s customers have transitioned from traditional to online banking. We have also moved towards more automation and use of robotics and smart technologies to have over 90 per cent of transactions now fully automated in specific processing areas. Despite the pandemic, we rolled out a number of products including NBF Connect, a platform designed to empower, network and help SMEs with their business challenges; eDirham Instant, a digital payment method that allows customers to securely pay for governmental fees and services; NBF klip, a robust, secure and interoperable digital cash platform that is designed to transition the UAE to a truly cashless society.

More recently, NBF participated for the launch of UAE Trade Connect, a nationwide blockchain platform, co-created by Etisalat Digital. This platform aims at supporting financial institutions combat fraud and duplication and to tackle key issues in the trade finance space.

New technologies in banking, as well as unprecedented global events continue to transform the financial sector, and the traditional banking landscape is set to rapidly change in the next few years.

Companies and financial institutions are navigating a fast-paced and shifting technological environment with one goal in mind: to enhance the customer experience. In an ever-evolving climate, maintaining convenience, efficiency, and security is imperative for a successful customer experience. As a dedicated financial partner, we are trying to progress with our digital transformation efforts offering experience-led solutions that aim to provide customers with a seamless experience.

Do you foresee Blockchain taking a greater role in trade finance and supply chain payments?

This is already happening; a Blockchainbased infrastructure will drive efficiencies, reduce cost base and open up new revenue opportunities. As a new way to secure the transfer of value, blockchain technology promises to increase collaboration, automation and oversight in trade finance transactions, all being benefits to both banks and customers.

In trade finance, banks facilitate international trade by providing financing to buyers and sellers. However, as the trade war intensifies between the US and countries such as China, banks are looking to reduce some of the risks they take on through technological innovations. Banks are reducing their reliance on antiquated manual processes and digitizing key trade documents, like Letters of Credit (LCs), to reduce cost and improve efficiency.

Others are looking to replace the process altogether with longer term applications of Distributed Ledger Technologies (DLTs).

Taking trade finance into the new era holds the promise of improved speed and processes; this is where Blockchain fits in. The reasons behind the adoption of Blockchain technology in trade finance is owed to the existing challenges of today’s processes ranging from manual

contract creation to usage of multiple platforms leading high chances of fraud.

Below is the list of main benefits that Blockchain technology brings to the trading ecosystem:

Real-time review : Financial documents linked and accessible through Blockchain are reviewed and approved in real-time, reducing the time it takes to initiate shipment

Transparent factoring: Invoices accessed on Blockchain provide a real-time and transparent view into subsequent short-term financing

Disintermediation: Banks facilitating trade finance through Blockchain do not require a trusted intermediary to

of essential documents to assist in enforcement and AML activities

How has UAE Trade Connect helped NBF tackle key issues in the trade finance space?

UAE Trade Connect (UTC) is a unique platform that enhances collaboration between all UAE banks and the supply chain industry on combatting fraud and duplication, among other issues in the trade finance space.

UTC’s initial phase focuses on addressing the risks of multiple financing amongst banks and invoice frauds which, if not mitigated, can eventually lead to the weakening of a bank’s balance sheet

MORE RECENTLY, NBF PARTICIPATED FOR THE LAUNCH OF UAE TRADE CONNECT, A NATIONWIDE BLOCKCHAIN PLATFORM, COCREATED BY ETISALAT DIGITAL assume risk, eliminating the need for correspondent banks

Reduced counterparty risk: Bills of lading are tracked through Blockchain, eliminating the potential for doublespending and potential frauds

Decentralised contract execution: As contract terms are met, status is updated on Blockchain in real-time, reducing the time and headcount required to monitor the delivery of goods

P roof of ownership: The title available within Blockchain provides transparency into the location and ownership of the goods due to Data immutability benefits of DLT

Automated settlement and reduced transaction fees: Contract terms executed via Smart Contract eliminate the need for correspondent banks and additional transaction fees

Regulatory transparency: Regulators are provided with a real-time view

and in turn, dampen the overall mood of financing to SMEs in the economy. UTC is expected to facilitate increased lending to SMEs to strengthen the UAE’s positioning as a central trading hub in the region.

As an award-winning bank in trade finance, and a leader in providing trade finance to the UAE business community, NBF is one of the banks participating in UTC which we consider an enabler of growth in the space, and an innovative solution to problems industry stakeholders have historically grappled with.

UTC has helped us in avoiding duplicate financing and identification of fraudulent invoices thus helping us to support genuine business to be financed.

With the help of the UTC platform, we are also able to check invoices with different grades of efficiencies. This means that Corporates and SMEs can complete their transactions quicker while enjoying an elevated customer experience. mea-finance.com

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COVER INTERVIEW

On Course for Success Discussing their performance in 2021 and looking ahead to the coming year, Hisham Alrayes CEO of GFH Financial Group tells MEA Finance that despite the challenges of identifying of the best opportunities, their strategy of actively investing for growth has successfully yielded the positive results they planned for this year, thus finding themselves well placed to take advantage of emerging trends and openings in 2022.

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Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

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merging from 2020’s restrictions, how would you define GFH’s financial performance in 2021?

Our financial performance in 2021 has been robust coming off the back of the pandemic year. It goes without saying that 2020 was a year like no other. We have not seen anything like 2020 in the last two decades we have been operating in Bahrain. The crisis whipped up extremely strong economic headwinds causing some major shifts in the investment landscape, not just here in the GCC but worldwide. Markets saw share prices plummet and investment professionals turned to safeguarding their assets. The economic fallout from the pandemic weighed heavily on a number of our peers in the GCC and the impact of Covid-19 is still being felt within the region’s investor community.

In spite of the subsequent economic downturn, GFH managed to produce stronger-than-average results in 2020.

In fact, the group generated a net profit attributable to shareholders of more than $45 million in 2020, a reduction of around 30% compared to 2019 but a very strong result nevertheless, all things considered. And we made more than $208 million in new investments.

We did not simply weather the storm, we continued to make strides across the business and delivered another solid dividend for our shareholders even in our toughest ever year. We are grateful to have achieved the continuity of our operations and delivery of highquality services for our clients and shareholders. We are also grateful for the market’s continued confidence in our group’s financial position despite 2020’s economic turmoil.

Needless to say, we entered 2021 in a strong position with a lot of confidence in our model, diversification approach and operational resilience. We also entered with a very promising pipeline of opportunities which we have since converted into transactions that were welcomed by our investors across the

Hisham Alrayes CEO of GFH Financial Group

region. The first nine months of 2021 have been marked by substantial growth in income and profits. The group delivered a net profit attributable to shareholders of more than $60 million over the first three quarters of 2021, an increase of over 160% compared to the same period in 2020. We’re pleased with these results and GFH’s continued ability to deliver across its diversified lines of business and geographies where we invest.

Rejuvenations and reorganisations shaped the industry landscape in 2021. What strategies have GFH been most active in pursuing in this year?

Despite an ever-changing market, we have maintained a sharp focus on pursuing the tried and tested model which proved so resilient. We have continued to favour future-proof investments in defensive sectors and are confident this strategy will continue to deliver strong value and returns for

shareholders regardless of shifts in the industry landscape.

That said, we are equally opportunistic and always working to tweak and sharpen our strategies to ensure they thrive regardless of external pressures. The group has been able to restructure the balance sheet of Khaleeji Commercial Bank, a majority owned subsidiary of GFH, with the objective of ensuring the bank contributes to recurring growth revenues in the future. This particular strategy is already bearing fruit in terms of our bottom line, with commercial banking income now accounting for roughly 20% of the total income of the group. We expect this contribution to increase as we complete the acquisition of Khaleeji Commercial Bank.

In 2021, we have also continued to build on our global portfolio of incomeyielding real estate assets capable of delivering solid returns for the group and our investors. We maximised our value creation potential by tapping into a mea-finance.com

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COVER INTERVIEW

wider range of asset classes, sectors, and markets, pursuing opportunities to expand our portfolio both in our home markets in the GCC and beyond. For example, we have made several acquisitions in the US, UK, and Europe.

At the closing of 2020, we acquired Roebuck Asset Management, a UK and European logistics and business space focused real estate asset manager, which has seen us gain strategic access to prime deal flow within the European market in 2021, and leverage opportunities arising from the fast-growing logistics real estate sector. More recently, we have made several acquisitions in high-growth sectors in strategic geographies in the US. We acquired two multifamily residential sites in prime locations in Las Vegas for $200 million, invested in a $2 billion portfolio of logistics assets leased to Amazon, and most recently acquired a $150 million portfolio of medical offices spread across seven states in the US. These investments reflect our strategy for seeking out stable, high-growth opportunities across a diverse range of segments within real estate.

What have been your main challenges and most notable successes in 2021?

GFH has a legacy of continually evolving in the face of adverse market conditions and our strategy of business line diversification is a vital component of our resilience. Nevertheless, we have had to stand up to and solve challenges this year. One of the main challenges we have faced this year has been identifying the best opportunities for our investors as the world opens again. The impact of Covid has significantly impacted markets, industries, and the investment landscape.

As a result, new windows of opportunity have opened. There has been shift in the focus from the old school of business to new age business and it is a challenge finding opportunities within this space that will interest our investors. I believe that we have overcome this challenge. Our team of expert investment professionals

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NATIONAL ECONOMIC DIVERSIFICATION STRATEGIES AND GROWING BUSINESS CONFIDENCE AND INTEREST FROM FOREIGN INVESTORS IN THE REGION HAVE SET THE GCC’S BANKING SECTOR ON A STRONG GROWTH TRAJECTORY. has a finger on the pulse of markets around the world and has demonstrated an ability to quickly and proactively seek out new opportunities as they arise. This was exemplified in our move to acquire a portfolio of medical offices in the US. This particular sector in the US has emerged as one of the most promising areas of investment. The medical offices market is positioned for steady growth following a sizeable shift towards outpatient care to reduce pressure on overstretched hospital systems. The new round of acquisitions fits well into our strategy to build a portfolio of stabilised assets driven by solid long-term fundamentals and operating growth.

Despite the challenges, we have celebrated some notable successes and highlights aside from the various awards bestowed upon us. Towards the end of 2020 and during the whole of 2021, we have continually introduced opportunities for our investors in the global and US technology space through Global Tech Funds. This has given GFH and our shareholders access to market-leading, multi-billion-dollar US and global tech growth companies, in partnership with a top-tier growth and technology focused asset manager. We have also collaborated with top tier asset managers like Schroders during 2021 and with leading logistics companies like Amazon and FedEx and presented these opportunities to our investors.

We hope our investors can see we are not only targeting solid returns, but we are also investing with impact, aiming to add value to local communities. Our real

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

estate portfolio is an area where we are delivering significant value by supporting and improving assets. Our acquisition of a 70% stake in British International School of Tunis in Tunisia in 2021 will support plans to establish another branch of BIST in Tunis Bay as the iconic project continues to progress with the aim of providing a fully integrated and world-class commercial, residential and lifestyle offering.

Has 2021 been a better year than you were expecting?

This year has been in line with the roadmap laid out by the board after a period of uncertainty. While globally, we are still feeling the effects of the pandemic, our performance for the first nine months of 2021 underscores the robust nature of our strategy and the important positions we have built in resilient and defensive sectors and businesses around the world.

We entered 2021 with a clear plan and confidence in our strategic model. And as planned, we have continued to expand our presence in the global logistics real estate sector, bringing new and exciting deals to our investors and generating strong placement income.

While we are of course pleased and proud of our performance for the first nine months of the year, I cannot say we are particularly surprised by the outcome of our strategy. Our solid increases in income and profits reflect a well-diversified business model, effective management of investments and steady income generation capabilities, which has always been a key objective for the group.

During the year, we also benefited from

Open Banking. Bahrain in particular is a leader in fintech in the GCC and GFH is well placed here to take advantage of emerging trends and opportunities in the banking and financial market in 2022.

What do you think brought GFH its success in winning The Best Islamic Investment Bank and The Best Sukuk Deal of the year at the 2021 MEA Finance Awards?

a strong demand from our investors for deals we have closed in the US real estate market in well performing segments such as logistics and residential. We have also made gains from improving performance in our commercial banking activities.

even greater value for our investors and shareholders, within the region and beyond. 2022 will be defined by a diversification of our services and assets in line with our recession-proof approach to the investment landscape.

What are the target markets for GFH in 2022?

What trends will define regional banking and financial market activity in 2022?

Moving forward, growth remains a central theme for GFH in all areas of our business.

We have entered the final month of the year with a sharp focus on investments and relationships that will allow us to accelerate growth in our portfolios in key sectors including logistics, technology and education, among others. In 2022, our eye for investments in strategic geographies will remain as sharp as ever. We will continue to hunt opportunities in areas including the GCC, US, UK and Europe within markets positioned for steady growth. We look forward to announcing further strategic transactions and new partnerships with a view towards creating

National economic diversification strategies and growing business confidence and interest from foreign investors in the region have set the GCC’s banking sector on a strong growth trajectory. Going into 2022, digitalisation and Fourth Industrial Revolution technologies will remain key themes in the region’s banking and financial market. In fact, the GCC is regarded as one of the world’s highest-potential fintech ecosystems. Banking customers here are ready to start using advanced fintech solutions and there is significant growth potential for areas such as

We believe our success at the MEA Finance Awards was down to a number of factors. First and foremost, our clients’ trust and continued partnership are paramount to our group’s success.

We have also benefitted from our commitment to offering clients a personalised private banking experience tailored to their individual needs and goals. That is in addition to our continued efforts to diversify our investments into new markets and sectors, which allows us to identify and offer our clients investment opportunities that are downturn-resistant and provide attractive returns.

Furthermore, strengthened market confidence in GFH was exemplified by our successful completion of a $500 million sukuk issuance in June 2020 to regional and international investors alike, demonstrating resounding trust in our performance and future prospects.

This was also a sound approval of our commitment to our robust strategy. We are fast becoming recognised as the region’s top Islamic investment bank, and we are constantly working to develop the Shariacompliant services and products we offer.

On top of all this, reputable international credit rating agencies have reaffirmed the group’s Long-and Short-Term Issuer Default Ratings, taking into account the management’s strategic objective of reshaping GFH’s business model towards more stable and recurring revenue sources. We are very pleased that we are increasingly receiving recognition from rating agencies, industry peers, clients and the broader investment community, not just in the GCC region, but internationally. mea-finance.com

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PARTNER CONTENT

Celebrating 10 years of innovative Islamic investment with a Swiss touch Arnaud Leclercq is Partner Holding Privé and Head of New Markets at Swiss private bank Lombard Odier, which has been serving clients in the region for more than fifty years. The area is now one of the fastest growing and most strategically important markets for the Group and here, Arnaud discusses the evolution of the Islamic investment solutions franchise Lombard Odier Assayil, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary in 2022

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h e S h a r i a h of fe r i n g at Lombard Odier was created almost ten years ago. How has it evolved?

We h a ve b e e n of fe r i n g I s l a m i c investment solutions, including our Shariah discretionary mandate, under the umbrella brand of Lombard Odier Assayil since 2012. Lombard Odier continues to develop and grow its Shariah mandates, supported by our eminent Shariah board and the scholars of Amanie Advisors, who certified us as Shariah-compliant in 2018. We have won awards for our Shariah expertise on numerous occasions, like recently at the WealthBriefing MENA awards, or last year at the PWM/The Banker Awards. We feel very honoured by this recognition, but are not afraid to rethink our approach and remain open to new ideas and collaborations in the region.

Lombard Odier has entered into strategic partnerships, like the one with SEDCO Capital recently.

How did that come about?

Lombard Odier has actually already

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Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

been working with SEDCO Capital for many years. In 2021 we decided to go a step further, as the investment solutions expertise of our two companies is aligned with both the principles of Islamic finance and sustainability. One notable result is our pioneering sustainable

IN FACT, WE WERE THE FIRST SWISS PRIVATE BANK TO OPEN IN THE PRESTIGIOUS ABU DHABI GLOBAL MARKET equity investment strategy, which is not only Shariah-compliant but also adapted to European UCITS standards.

How is investor demand for this kind of offering changing?

Shariah-compliant sustainable investing is still in its early stages in the region.

But for the Arab world, where Islamic investments are already well established, socially responsible and sustainable opportunities are a natural fit. Besides, there has been a change in investors’ mindset, with a belief now that sustainable investing will be crucial to unlocking future returns.

What has contributed most to your growth and success? What makes you stand out?

Our roots are Swiss, and reflect the experience, stability and security that we offer. But we have served clients in the Middle East for over half a century, so we have a deep understanding of their specific needs. Our approach is bespoke and we build our offering around our clients’ needs; that’s a key factor which makes us standout. Our discretionary Shariah mandate, for example, is not a ‘one-size-fitsall’ fund, like many others in the market – it’s

Arnaud Leclercq, Partner Holding Privé and Head of New Markets, Lombard Odier and Soumaya Hissoussi, Senior Vice President, Lombard Odier ADGM Branch

a fully customisable solution. Depending on the individual client’s suitability, risk profile and investment preferences, it can be built using any mixture of sukuks, equities and short-term instruments, Shariah-compliant funds and exchange-

a branch in Abu Dhabi in 2019, to serve our local clients better with bespoke onshore wealth solutions. In fact, we were the first Swiss private bank to open in the prestigious Abu Dhabi Global Market. We are committed to building

WE HAVE BEEN OFFERING ISLAMIC INVESTMENT SOLUTIONS, INCLUDING OUR SHARIAH DISCRETIONARY MANDATE, UNDER THE UMBRELLA BRAND OF LOMBARD ODIER ASSAYIL SINCE 2012 traded products, as well as investments in areas such as real estate, gold and structured products.

How has business been over the past few months? How do you envisage the future in the UAE? Assets from the UAE are growing at a double-digit rate. That’s why we opened

a strong footprint in the Middle East, and the UAE is one of its largest wealth markets. Having opened our office in Dubai in 2007, our Abu Dhabi branch is testament to our faith in the growth and economic stability of the region and our confidence in the Emirates’ future as a key business location and wealth generator. mea-finance.com

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LEADERSHIP SERIES

Reliability and Growth In an interview with Blaise Goetschin, CEO of Banque Cantonale de Genève, he describes what attracts regional investors to Switzerland, how BCGE is expanding across the board and what he sees as the next key development in trade finance

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hat is your view on the Swiss economy for the coming months? How might this influence your Middle Eastern clients?

The Swiss economy was very resilient, was very resistant to the pandemic and was able to produce a recovery quite quickly, except for businesses like hotels, tourism, events, these kinds of industries, they had difficulty, but the rest made a strong recovery.

Switzerland is solid and the Swiss franc is really a reflects this, and this leads us to the second aspect of the question. Our middle east eastern clients favour the stability, the solidity and also a strong currency.

In the 2021 half-year results, the bank reported an increase in assets under management. What is driving this growth?

Yes, we are very proud to have now reached today more than the equivalent of US$34-billion-dollar in assets under management. This is coming from our retail activity and private banking in Switzerland, and the bank is also strong in France too. Additionally, our offshore assets are coming from the Middle East and Asia who are also strong contributors, where there really was a flow of new funds, which was very positive. We also developed new funds too and we have funds under the brand Synchrony and under institutional management. So, with all these activities,

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because basically we are a universal bank, they brought us all their fruits.

What role does the bank play for Geneva and the canton’s economy?

It’s a fundamental role. We are the Geneva financier for SMEs, for basic companies, for people, for families; we are the number one local. This is very important.

There is also a very big competition in the Geneva market, there are a lot of banks, but we are proud to have the number one place.

Can you tell me more about your branches in Dubai and in Hong Kong?

Firstly, we are in these two places for more than ten years, so it’s not new to us; we go step by step. Secondly, we need windows on the world, and we have Middle East and also Asia as the two with the highest potential for us. This is why we have a small but very efficient teams there, and we can develop our different businesses internationally.

What are the plans for the future of the bank generally, and in this region too?

The plans are to go step by step in our different activities. Trade finance, there are a lot of clients working here. In the energy, metal, agricultural and also correspondent banking; we do a lot of business with banks, which is amazing.

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

Blaise Goetschin CEO of Banque Cantonale de Genève, BCGE

We do also distribute our funds, mutual funds (we now have the ability to improve this distribution) and the private banking.

We help, indeed I would say we are a contributor to the exchange between Emirates economy and Swiss economy.

There are a lot of interactions.

How do you see private banking in Switzerland evolving?

Private banking in Switzerland is still strong. It is today around 25 percent of total worldwide offshore assets. So, we are still successful in this business, even if it is much more regulated and much more transparent.

So, I think this quality, with the strong Swiss franc, the stability of the country, neutrality also (political neutrality is important), makes Switzerland attractive for investors who wants to divest their position worldwide. Also, they deposit for safety reasons.

What do you think will be the next key developments in the evolution of commercial banking and trade finance?

The key point is digitalisation, which is also going to come with blockchain, bringing simplicity in dealing with the administration, by which I mean how to onboard a company, how to treat documents and everything. I think this is going to be the next move, and it will cost us a lot because we have to digitise our interactions with companies. I think this is the next move.

BANKRUPTCY & DEBT RESTRUCTURING

Reorganise and Reform The structural reforms that are being implemented across the Gulf region, including modern bankruptcy legislation, have boosted the oil-rich nations’ efforts to make their economies more enticing to investors

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he COVID-19 pandemic is expected to put to test the insolvency and restructuring refo r m s t h a t a re b e i n g implemented across the six-nation bloc of GCC countries. Bankruptcy and insolvency laws seek to stimulate economies by allowing individuals and corporates in financial distress to reorganise their financial affairs and repay their debts.

The lack of modern bankruptcy legislation in the GCC region created difficulties for cash-strapped companies seeking to restructure debt with

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creditors since the 2008 global financial crisis and the oil price crash in 2014.

However, the structural reforms that are being implemented across the region, including modern bankruptcy legislation, have boosted the oil-rich nations’ efforts to make their economies more enticing to investors.

Though GCC countries introduced billions of dollars in stimulus measures to mitigate the economic impact of coronavirus last year, governments also made changes to insolvency regimes to provide more sustainable options for companies that needed financial

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

restructuring. According to the World Bank, bankruptcy costs play a major role, during both crises and recoveries.

Saudi Arabia’s bankruptcy law faced its major test in resolving the kingdom’s longest-running and largest debt dispute involving Ahmad Hamad Algosaibi & Brothers Co.’s (AHAB). Resolving insolvency was an area of improvement for Saudi Arabia, which saw the Gulf state climbing 30 places to 62nd in the World Bank Doing Business 2020 report.

GCC bankruptcy regimes

UAE The UAE broadened the scope of the 2016 bankruptcy law in November 2020 to protect individuals and businesses facing insolvency due to “emergency situations”—a category that covers the COVID-19 pandemic and extends to include natural as well as manmade disasters, including wars.

PwC said that the UAE’s bankruptcy law contributes to raising the level of credit and financial security in the country by enhancing investor confidence. The

new insolvency regime stipulates that a debtor is exempted from immediately launching bankruptcy proceedings while they try to settle with creditors, provided they can prove that such an emergency has damaged their operations.

“The real test of the UAE’s insolvency regime will be whether it succeeds in triggering a culture shift, away from the previous mindset in which bankruptcy was regarded as synonymous with going out of business,” said PwC. It is worth noting that it’s not only the UAE federal insolvency laws that have been revamped to assist businesses and individuals in financial distress to rehabilitate, but economic free zones including the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) and the Abu Dhabi Global Market recently amended their bankruptcy regimes to offer companies within their jurisdictions more options.

DIFC’s insolvency law, which was enacted by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE, and Ruler of Dubai and came into effect in August 2019, enhances the rules governing winding-up procedures; and incorporates the UNCITRAL Model Law on cross border insolvency proceedings with certain modifications for application in the centre.

The regime also provides for a new administration process where there is evidence of mismanagement or misconduct. The UAE federal government introduced the bankruptcy and financial restructuring law to support the nation’s legislative structure, protects its investors as well as strengthen its position in various global competitiveness indices to boost foreign direct investment (FDI).

UAE’s high-profile insolvency involving NMC Healthcare and around 25 creditors utilized ADGM insolvency laws allowing the hospital operator to restructure its debt of more than $4 billion and 34 group companies to exit administration.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said that the UAE’s insolvency law

contributes to raising the level of credit and financial security in the country by enhancing investor confidence as well as stimulating the nation’s economy by allowing people in financial difficulty to reorganise their financial affairs and repay their debts.

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia’s bankruptcy law, which came into force in 2018, has been instrumental in putting a formal end to one of the Gulf state’s long-running debt saga. The Dammam commercial court earlier in October 2021 issued the final ratification order for AHAB restructuring, allowing the family-owned business to end the 12-year debt dispute.

on around $22 billion in combined debt in 2009. Saad Group is also going through the bankruptcy process in Saudi Arabia.

Al Tamimi & Co., a UAE-based law firm, said Saudi Arabia’s insolvency law contains many of the features of a modern western-styled bankruptcy regime reflecting the extensive benchmarking process, which occurred before it was drafted as part of its development.

Oman Oman’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry (MoCI) unveiled the Gulf state’s bankruptcy and insolvency regime in 2019 and it came into effect in July 2020.

The introduction of bankruptcy law in the Sultanate would help companies to get

UAE’S INSOLVENCY LAW CONTRIBUTES TO RAISING THE LEVEL OF CREDIT AND FINANCIAL SECURITY IN THE COUNTRY BY ENHANCING INVESTOR CONFIDENCE AS WELL AS STIMULATING THE NATION’S ECONOMY BY ALLOWING PEOPLE IN FINANCIAL DIFFICULTY TO REORGANISE THEIR FINANCIAL AFFAIRS AND REPAY THEIR DEBTS – The IMF

Under the settlement deal, creditors of AHAB including global banks such as BNP Paribas and Citigroup are set to see some of their loans be at least partially repaid as the Saudi conglomerate faces debt claims totalling $7.3 billion (SAR 27.5 billion). The settlement assets include over $213 million (SAR 800 million) in cash, a portfolio of publicly traded shares worth about $987 million (SAR 3.7 billion) and real estate assets in Saudi Arabia.

AHAB and Saad Group have been locked in legal battles and negotiations with creditors since the duo defaulted

out of the financial turmoil after paying debts and reconciling with creditors as per a restructuring plan.

PwC said that prior to the introduction of bankruptcy law, the laws and regulations on bankruptcies in Oman were fragmented and only partially addressed in existing laws such as commercial law.

However, the new regime introduced the concept of a “Restructuring Plan” and restructuring procedures to help businesses overcome the debt stage, reach a compromise with debtors and avoid bankruptcy. mea-finance.com

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MoCI’s legal department said that a debtor who would have stopped paying their debts can apply to the Audit and Control of Commercial Establishments Department in the country to request restructuring on condition that the debtor continues operating during the two years preceding the filing of the application and that no final judgement has been issued against him to declare bankruptcy.

Oman’s insolvency law also gives inheritors of the debtor the right to apply the same request one year from the date of the debtor death, provided that the company is not in the process of liquidation.

The regime stipulates that the debtor continues to manage his funds during the implementation phase of the restructuring plan and remains responsible for any obligations or contracts arising before or after the date of the adoption of the restructuring plan.

The Sultanate’s bankruptcy law also grants every trader the right to file for bankruptcy, in case they stop paying their commercial debts following the disruption of business activities. “With the bankruptcy law, Oman now has in place a comprehensive bankruptcy regime which is generally aligned with international standards and practices,” said PwC. Kuwait The absence of insolvency and bankruptcy protection has been cited as a significant deterrent to foreign investment in most Gulf region countries at a time they’re seeking to diversify their economies away from reliance on oil revenues. Kuwait’s parliament passed a long-awaited insolvency law in September 2020 which is expected to boost the country’s investment and commerce appeal while increasing protection for distressed businesses.

Under the Gulf state’s previous regime, failure to make debt repayments meant automatic bankruptcy and the defaulter faced penalties, including

SAUDI ARABIA’S INSOLVENCY LAW CONTAINS MANY OF THE FEATURES OF A MODERN WESTERN-STYLED BANKRUPTCY REGIME REFLECTING THE EXTENSIVE BENCHMARKING PROCESS, WHICH OCCURRED BEFORE IT WAS DRAFTED AS PART OF ITS DEVELOPMENT – Al Tamimi & Co

imprisonment, deprivation of political rights and travel bans. However, the new law does not treat failure to pay debt as a criminal offence, rather it allows bankruptcy to be avoided either by a settlement with creditors or a restructuring plan.

Kuwait’s new bankruptcy regime seeks to rehabilitate debt-stricken businesses and save them from default rather than expedite liquidation. The law led to the establishment of a specialised bankruptcy court to speed up cases. It also gives special protection to small and medium enterprises and in some cases waives part of their debt.

WITH THE BANKRUPTCY LAW, OMAN NOW HAS IN PLACE A COMPREHENSIVE BANKRUPTCY REGIME WHICH IS GENERALLY ALIGNED WITH INTERNATIONAL STANDARDS AND PRACTICES – PwC

Kuwait’s new bankruptcy law is a major step forward and it is influenced by features of several insolvency law regimes in other jurisdictions, as well as international insolvency law trends, said Al Tamimi & Co.

Driving forces Despite a strong economic recovery in 2017/18 in the GCC region, the global financial crisis in 2008/09 and the plunge in oil prices in mid-2014 had a significant negative impact on regional countries’ GDP and the real estate was not immune. The outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic further battered the property market which led to the collapse of UAE construction giant Arabtec and intensified engineering group Drake & Scull International’s financial woes.

Dubai court accepted Arabtec’s bankruptcy application in June 2021 and appointed trustees to oversee the liquidation proceedings while Drake & Scull International said that it is seeking approval from the company’s 600-plus creditors as it waits for court process and rights issue to the existing shareholders.

Meanwhile, in Saudi Arabia, the CEO of Binladin International Holding Group, the country’s biggest construction firm, told Al Arabiya TV in April 2021 that he expects the company to reach an initial agreement to restructure its debt, which is estimated at $8.8 billion (SAR 33 billion) by the end of June. mea-finance.com

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DATA SECURITY BANKING TECHNOLOGY

Reimagining banking with new digital business model archetypes There’s no aspect of banking that is untouched by the new business models possible today. In this article, Sanat Rao CEO at Infosys Finacle, speaks about the 8 new business model archetypes such as BaaS, Marketplace Banking, & Banking Utilities that are becoming mainstream in the banking industry

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Sanat Rao Chief Executive Officer, Infosys Finacle

he conversation about digital business model innovation is not new, but it has never been more pressing. As CEOs grapple with their biggest challenge, namely, how to stay relevant amid rapid change and uncertainty, the legacy pipeline-based business model was often at the heart of the problem, and ecosystem-led business model, invariably, at the heart of the solution.

Digital technologies are unlocking opportunities to create, deliver, and

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realize value in new ways. By and large, the traditional universal bank is built on a pipeline model where the bank does everything, from manufacturing to selling to distributing, on its own, using in-house resources. This vertically-integrated pipeline business model is breaking apart, giving way to fragmenting value chains and new business model opportunities.

Our latest research study on digital banking business model innovation, conducted in association with 11:FS, organized the new models into 8

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

distinct archetypes, which are briefly described below: Digital-only banks: Digital-only banks deliver banking services entirely (or almost) through digital touchpoints.

Their key competitive advantages are high-quality self-service experiences and much lower operating costs than traditional banks. While digital banks mostly target digital-native/ tech-savvy consumers and small businesses, some start with narrower segments and gradually expand their reach to

other groups. Digital banks are mobilefirst, with some online banking offerings; and even their customer service is digital-first, chatbots led with limited human support. There is a long list of such banks, among them, Marcus by Goldman Sachs, Liv. By Emirates NBD, Digibank, Monzo and Kakao Bank.

Digital financial advisors: The digital financial advisor model brings the private banking experience to a much larger customer base. With data proliferating rapidly, and becoming highly accessible in the open banking economy, firms, such as Plum, Snoop and TMRW by UOB, are able to run it through AI algorithms to understand a customer’s financial situation and offer highly personalized, appropriate financial advice. The traditional relationship manager is replaced by a hybrid of self-service and personal assistance rendered by both humans and chatbots.

F inance marketplaces: Finance marketplaces enable customers to choose financial services from a variety of third-party suppliers in an open environment. These marketplaces are accessed through websites and apps, and also developer portals and APIs. Examples include BankBazaar, Stripe, and Raisin. As the industry embraces open banking and open data paradigms, these marketplaces would increasingly democratize and facilitate easy access to the best products and services.

N o n - f i n a n c e m a r ke t p l a c e s : Financial Institutions-led non-finance marketplaces – such as those from DBS Bank and Paytm – enable customers to choose a range of (nonfinancial) goods and services from suppliers in an open environment. For instance, DBS Marketplace is a onestop portal to browse property listings, cars, book travel flights, book hotels, and compare utility providers, with financing options bundled along.

Banking as a service (BaaS): In this model, a bank offers complete banking processes around their financial products such as payments, loans or

THE CONVERSATION ABOUT DIGITAL BUSINESS MODEL INNOVATION IS NOT NEW, BUT IT HAS NEVER BEEN MORE PRESSING. AS CEOS GRAPPLE WITH THEIR BIGGEST CHALLENGE, NAMELY, HOW TO STAY RELEVANT AMID RAPID CHANGE AND UNCERTAINTY, THE LEGACY PIPELINE-BASED BUSINESS MODEL WAS OFTEN AT THE HEART OF THE PROBLEM, AND ECOSYSTEM-LED BUSINESS MODEL, INVARIABLY, AT THE HEART OF THE SOLUTION. deposits as a service that third parties can embed into their products and services. BaaS enables integration of financial products seamlessly into the primary journeys of the customers such as getting instant auto loan at the dealer site. Typically delivered through welldefined APIs and business partnerships, BaaS is gaining significant traction across the globe. Banks of all sizes and persona such as BBVA, Goldman Sachs, Sutton Bank, ICICI Bank, and Solaris Bank are actively building their business using this approach. In addition, specialist BaaS intermediaries such as Galileo, Marqeta, and Setu, are also getting significant traction.

Banking industry utilities: Banking industry utilities specialize in delivering non-differentiating services by pooling resources, expertise, and capabilities to increase the efficiencies of all industry participants. The utilities offer a Business platform as a Service (BPaaS), combining technology, operations, and data. Examples include ClearBank - UK’s new clearing bank, Stater – The largest mortgage service provider of the Benelux that services 1.7 million mortgage and insurance loans for about 50 financial institutions in the Netherlands and Belgium Banking curators: New-age digital banks following this model aim to offer

best-of-breed products by combining basic accounts with financial advice and a curated set of third-party products on a single platform. N26, Monzo and Starling Bank are all examples of banking curators.

E mbedded finance: Companies with frequent engagement and deep customer understanding are embedding banking and payments into non-financial products and services. The interest for embedded finance is rising across industries.

Digital technology giants, e-commerce companies, retailers, travel – companies from across the spectrum are actively embedding financial products in their user’s customer journeys. For instance, buy now pay later proposition at the time of checkout or offering cash-flow based credit products to suppliers in association with banks. Shopify offers a good example here. It offers buy now pay later option for consumers, a business debit card for merchants, and plans to offer business bank account with Stripe Treasury.

Like most businesses, banking is also going the way of the ecosystem. A scan of the landscape shows that few, if any, banks are succeeding by standing alone.

But to thrive in an ecosystem, banks need to adopt new business models, such as those identified above. mea-finance.com mea-finance.com

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PARTNER CONTENT

Knowing Your Customer The need to connect with customers with the ability to satisfy their growing standards and expectations of service delivery is fast becoming key to the success of banks in the region and across the globe. Hany Al Deeb Managing Director of BPC in the Middle East shows how they have this at the heart of their suite of services and solutions

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ell us about BPC, your key roles and your activities in the UAE and in the wider region.

BPC has been in the UAE since 2013, delivering world class banking, payments and mobility experiences for financial institutions and their customers. We work alongside retail banks, fintechs, government and payment service providers across the whole of the Middle East and Africa, ensuring they can connect with their customers, bringing seamless and relevant experiences that provide services at the level they expect. With customers increasingly setting industry standards, inspired by the way they shop online, we need to rethink the processes involved in transactions from the customers perspective and use that knowledge to help financial institutions to create better customer experiences. Projects we have been involved with in the region are of important impact in the way people pay, get paid and move. This was a key consideration for building a new payment infrastructure for WeNet, Yemen’s National Financial Switch interbank network. BPC’s SmartVista platform was chosen to develop Yemen’s Instant Transfer Scheme (ITS) for real time retail payments and the National Switch for card payments bringing together all key players, banks, fintechs, telcos and bill aggregator to build the foundation that

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will help foster new economic horizons in the country.

How do BPC’s mobile digital solutions help banks to better interact with their customers?

At BPC we do not believe a mobile or internet banking solution on its own will suffice in fulfilling customer needs. We are expert in building integrated digital ecosystems comprising of key players, banks, processors & merchants to deliver relevant services to customers to fulfill their everyday financial needs across the region and the world. We link real life needs to smart digital solutions, helping customers in various industries ranging from banking, retail to mobility to build out meaningful ecosystems. In Bahrain, we successfully powered a white labelled payment platform for a PSP (Payment Services Provider), delivering its services region wide and lately marketplaces for a telecommunications business. In Egypt, we are engaged in smart mobility initiatives, removing the need for paper tickets and transport cards, to let people tap and move across public transport using any payment method.

What do you see as the main oncoming challenges for banks in the region and how will BPC help them overcome them?

Banks learned an important lesson during

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

Hany Al Deeb Managing Director for GCC and Iraq

the global pandemic about the importance of accessibility between them and their clients, but they also need to change the way they think about providing services that their customers want. Building strong relationships with customers will never be the same therefore thinking smart and differently is essential. Being part of the lifestyle of customers and consumers is key and there are great opportunities across the region for them if they implement the right systems and approaches. At BPC, we craft customer stories and act as an enabler for financial institutions to keep connected to their customers using best of breed technology. Our SmartVista platform is a comprehensive suite that is easily adaptable to existing customer infrastructure, readily connecting with online banking systems and interacting with external PSPs and can be used in different flavours, big bang approach, modular or as a service. Most importantly, its configuration capabilities help build hyper-personalised experiences for customers that deliver results. As an example, Tyme Bank South Africa, who is using SmartVista, managed to onboard 4 million customers under 3 years by enabling both customer onboarding and card issuing within 5 minutes using kiosks located in retail stores. Kiosks are far from being new, but the capability to instantly get a card issued and the whole experience made the difference.

We continue to build new customer journeys with neobanks in the region and seeing the immediate results is what’s motivating us to pursue our mission.

More hands on deck.

Easier to navigate the winds of change.

You are independent. But never alone.

In the investment markets, change can work to your advantage.

You just have to know how to navigate it. See how you can make the best of the opportunities change brings with our in-depth briefings, staggering choice of investment options and much-awarded trading interface.

Extensive spectrum of investment products: 40,000 trading instruments across 125 global markets.

Regulated by SCA Disclaimer: Century Financial Consultancy LLC (CFC) is Limited Liability Company incorporated under the Laws of UAE and is duly licensed and regulated by the Emirates Securities and Commodities Authority of UAE (SCA). Services offered by CFC include financial market products that are traded on margin and can result in losses that exceed deposits. Transactions or trades in the financial markets are very risky, and you should trade only with the capital you can afford to risk or lose.

Before deciding to trade on leveraged products, you should consider your investment objectives, risk tolerance and your level of experience with these products. Trading with leverage carries significant risk of losses and as such margin products are not suitable for every investor, and you should ensure that you understand the risks involved and seek independent advice from professionals and experts if necessary. CFC is not responsible or liable for any result, gain or loss, based on this information, in whole or in part. Refer to risk disclosure on our website.

PARTNER CONTENT

Bonyan REIT Fund, Enriching experiences The Bonyan REIT Fund, managed by Saudi Fransi Capital, has an approach to its assets that means actively bringing new and unique experiences for end-consumers and enriching communities by providing interactive places to visit, play or stay

Strong GDP projections, continued access to financing and increased tourism will lead to additional institutional-grade capital and assets becoming available, in addition to more individuals investing into REITs. The Fund is well placed to capitalize on these trends. All its assets are designed with a lifestyle mindset and its core values are aligned to Vision 2030 – promoting culture and entertainment.

The malls and hotels it invests in will contribute to the enrichment of families and communities at large by providing an interactive place to visit, play or stay.

Moreover, Bonyan REIT Fund directly and indirectly employs a workforce of over 600 personnel, with women forming a growing demographic.

About Bonyan REIT Fund

Al Rashid Mall, Bonyan REIT Fund

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stablished in 2018, the Bonyan REIT Fund is one of the largest real estate investment traded (REIT) funds listed on Tadawul.

With the aim to provide periodic rental income for its unitholders, the Fund owns and operates 11 revenue-generating properties across a wide range of sectors including commercial centers, residential compounds and business and suite hotels. These properties have a well-established tenancy base, which

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contributes to the Fund’s overall cash flows. Since launching three years ago, the Fund has paid dividends amounting to SAR 224.6 million, and as of December 31, 2020, the fair value of its properties was SAR 1.92 billion. Since inception, the Fund has generated a total annualized return of 13.94%.

Bonyan REIT Fund manager believes that the REIT sector in Saudi Arabia has yet to reach its maturity and, accordingly, is ripe for growth in the forthcoming years.

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

One feature that sets Bonyan REIT Fund apart is that its assets are pioneers in bringing in new experiences for end-consumers. The award-winning entertainment, dining, and leisure components, plus the latest technology, are the elements that enrich retail centers.

They motivate and give consumers reason to visit malls instead of shopping online.

The trio of malls offers a robust menu of lifestyle and entertainment choices that span health and wellness centers to spaces for arts and music events, creating a brand that more shoppers can relate to and want to frequent.

1. We use design to engrain the “wow!” factor into the mall’s brand.

In today’s world, a mall is not complete without some form of entertainment and leisure. No mall owner takes that maxim as far as Al-Rashid brand, whose malls have a combined builtup area exceeding 300,000 m2. Its

renowned leisure centers feature leading kids’ entertainment areas and wellness facilities.

2. We expand common spaces to create more points of convergence and grandeur. Common spaces are big draws for Al-Rashid malls, and spaces are actively utilized to create public awareness campaigns such as Breast Cancer Awareness, World Diabetes Day, National Day Celebration and other community engagement events supporting “Daem”, a national program to enhance the quality of cultural activities and entertainment.

3. We add “live/work” to give purpose to malls. Al-Rashid malls are combining shopping with live/work components. For example, Al-Rashid megamall, a mixed-use development in Madinah, started as a hotel remodel that transformed into a sizable 115,795 m2 plaza including restaurants, shopping, and offices.

4. We do not count on retail or anchors alone to drive traffic.

Our malls feature a space that offers hands-on activities for children as well as dining and leisure.

Balancing the design of the malls with dedicated spaces other than retail has become an important and successful component of Al-Rashid malls.

5. We close the dreaded Digital Divide. Digitization is providing more ways for shopping centers to connect meaningfully with techsavvy customers. Our property manager continues to revamp malls with a digital navigation and media program. Technology is reshaping the way we shop, share information, experience a place and even the way we bestow status. Robust, free Wi-Fi is “a bare minimum” for all our malls that are becoming relevant to techsavvy shoppers. Charging stations for mobile devices and interactive kiosks are also commonplace in our centers.

Bonyan REIT malls continue to assess shopping patterns for clues about how to reshape our malls to get more customers into our buildings. We will be looking to corral more unconventional tenants like health clubs, walk-in clinics and even car dealerships.

Overview of Saudi Fransi Capital Our history begins in 1985, when Banque Saudi Fransi offered securities brokerage in Saudi equities. One year later, we launched our first asset management fund. From that time on, we have expanded our offerings and capitalized on evolving financial services trends. By 2008, the bank had three establishments to undertake securities brokerage, asset management and investment banking advisory businesses. In 2011, the entities merged into a wholly owned subsidiary to form what is now known as Saudi Fransi Capital.

Today, we stand as a leading, fullservice Saudi-based financial services provider offering investment banking, asset management, debt and equity research, institutional sales and trading, and local and international securities brokerage. We are headquartered in Riyadh and have locations around the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.

Asset Management We are one of the leading providers of managed investment solutions for individuals, corporations and institutions.

The extensive range of products and services that are offered reflects our drive to satisfy each client’s unique needs.

Today, our range of products covers equity, fixed income, money markets, and alternative investments such as real estate, hedge funds, structured products, and private equity. Our products cover all major asset classes. It includes all our public and private funds, and our closedend private placements.

Investment Banking We are actively involved in raising capital through the equity and debt capital

markets and providing strategic and mergers and acquisitions advisory in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the region. Our services include advising and arranging sukuk and bonds, initial public offerings, rights issue, private placements, mergers and acquisitions, and capital and debt restructuring.

We also provide advisory services for companies abroad that wish to cross list on the Saudi stock exchange.

Securities Brokerage Our brokerage services are comprised of local, regional and global equity markets, swaps on equity, exchangetraded funds, options, fixed income and margin lending facilities both conventional and Sharia compliant.

We provide different interfaces for our trading platform whether the client requires in-person service, over the telephone or through a web or smart device application.

Investment Services We attend to the needs of financial institutions by constantly developing new and innovative services in sales trading, custody and sukuk agency services. In addition, we facilitate access to the Saudi equity market for qualified foreign investors (QFI) and provide them numerous services. Our clients include banks, mutual funds, pension funds, hedge funds, insurance companies, brokers and other financial institutions around the world.

Equities Research Through our exclusive focus on Saudi equities, our research provides fundamentally driven investment ideas to a diverse range of users with coverage representing the overall market capitalization across major sectors.

Research forms an integral part of our equity sales effort by highlighting key investment themes and uncovering tradable ideas. In addition, we issue strategy reports to assist sophisticated investors in navigating volatile markets. mea-finance.com

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MARKET INSIGHT

Fast-tracking the resurgence of the UAE economy 2021 has been a year of renewed optimism and increased confidence in the UAE economy, as the Government’s tactical approach to managing the pandemic has swiftly put the country back on track ahead of its Middle Eastern and Western counterparts. Building on the momentum that the UAE government has set, Virtuzone has quickly launched projects meant to leverage this and further accelerate the business sector’s recovery

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ioneering cryptocurrency payments We have become the first company in our industry to accept cryptocurrency payments for business setup, a strategic move that underlines our commitment to continuously innovate the company incorporation process in the UAE and adopt the latest fintech solutions that help solidify the UAE’s position as a leader in the region’s Fourth Industrial Revolution.

By initiating the acceptance of cryptocurrency payments, we seek to accelerate the implementation of cuttingedge digital technologies in the country and establish the UAE’s central role in creating a global borderless business hub.

Our role is to catalyse start-up growth in the UAE & MENA region Since we started over 12 years ago, we have been consistently guided by an overarching principle; to empower entrepreneurs who will empower the national economy.

Recognising the pivotal role we have in the UAE’s local business community, we continue to work alongside authorities

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George Hojeige CEO, Virtuzone

and private organisations to promote start-up development in the country and to provide them with a holistic support environment where they can get access to crucial resources such as funding, mentorship, technology and corporate infrastructure.

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

As part of this undertaking, we have recently joined the BY Fund II, a US$50 million venture capital fund launched by

BY Venture Partners to support earlystage start-ups, with the greater goal of linking the start-up sector of the UAE and MENA region with global markets.

Taking part in the BY Fund II gives us the opportunity to tap directly into the burgeoning start-up sector, especially in the fields of finance, technology and innovation, and work more closely with the founders, investors and other stakeholders who are behind the next generation of disruptive solutions designed to put the UAE at the forefront of global disruptive innovation.

In addition to collaborating with VCs and other investors, we have also increased our own start-up investment activities including taking on the lead role in the US$1 million investment round in HotDesk.

By investing in HotDesk, one of the select start-ups we are working with, we hope to send the message that Virtuzone is more than just the leading corporate services provider in the country. We are

active advocates of start-up success in the UAE, intent on partnering with and enabling entrepreneurs to grow their start-ups into scaleups.

The UAE has set the pace and we aim to follow through, with bigger targets, greater ambitions and more impressive feats in 2022.

Launching the MENA’s first e-commercefocused accelerator programme A c c o rd i n g t o S m a l l B u s i n e s s Ad m i n i st ra t i o n , a U n i te d S ta tes government agency focused on supporting entrepreneurs and small businesses, around 21.5 percent of startups fail in the first year. While the figures may vary according to different markets, sectors and locations, one thing they all highlight is how crucial the first year is for start-ups, and that it can make or break a newly formed business.

As we see the challenges that startups face first-hand, we have taken it on ourselves to create an avenue for them to minimise the risks involved in establishing a company, while providing them with a business ecosystem and network specifically designed to improve their chances of success.

That all-encompassing solution is AMP, an accelerator programme that we have initiated and launched together with our select partners including Aramex, a leading global provider of comprehensive logistics and transportation solutions; E t i s a l a t , t h e UA E ’s p i o n e e r i n g telecommunications service provider; Launch DXB, a platform that connects start-ups and entrepreneurs with growth resources, and more.

The first of its kind in the UAE and MENA region, AMP is an e-commercefocused accelerator founded on a collective goal of building an enabling environment that puts entrepreneurs in an optimal position to start and scale their operations fast and allows them to circumvent the obstacles hindering start-up growth.

This year, our corporate strategy and objectives have been largely motivated by the market opportunities emerging and resurfacing in the country, as the UAE successfully put the pandemic and its devastating impact under control.

E xpo 2020: Capitalising on its ongoing success and harnessing new opportunities Market analysts have estimated that the Expo 2020 will add US$33.4 billion of gross value to the national economy up to the year 2031 and will account for 1.5 percent of the UAE’s gross domestic product (GDP) throughout its six-month duration.

Nearly two months after the global fair has opened, the number of visitors has breached the four million mark, while the number of virtual visitors soared to 22 million. With the Expo 2020 gathering 192 countries in one enormous platform, business opportunities in various sectors are opening up faster, signalling a stronger economic performance in the last quarter of 2021 and in the coming year.

As we aim to harness the country’s exponential growth potential, we have developed long-term strategies that will enable us to further strengthen our presence in the UAE market and extend our reach to other emerging business hubs across the GCC region.

In 2022, we intend to build stronger ties with key government agencies and boost our public-private partnership activities, including introducing new and innovative business ecosystems that seamlessly merge our expertise and resources as a corporate service provider and the legal framework and support provided by the government to start-ups and entrepreneurs.

Exploring fintech and blockchain technology Cr yptocurrency data aggregator CoinMarketCap has reported that t h e re a re a p p rox i m a te l y 1 0,0 0 0 cryptocurrencies in the market as of 2021, reinforcing the status of cryptocurrencies and decentralised finance as the next big thing in the digital economy sphere.

In the UAE, although cryptocurrencies are not licensed by Central Bank, the

government is considering revising national regulations to accommodate the growing number of crypto-related businesses in the country, with Dubai anticipating housing over 1,000 operating cryptocurrency businesses next year.

S e e i n g t h e t re n d o f d i g i t a l t ra n sfo r m a t i o n m ov i n g towa rd s blockchain-based technologies, including Hyperledger and open banking, we have started exploring digital solutions and joint partnerships that will allow us to build an adaptable in-house system capable of supporting business opportunities related to fintech and blockchain by 2022.

If there is anything that the pandemic has surely taught the world, it is to keep an open mind, continuously innovate, be on the lookout for emerging technologies and consistently be ready to take advantage of unexpected opportunities.

The next breed of unicorns in the MENA region The UAE has revealed in November that it plans to be the home of 20 unicorns (private companies with individual valuations surpassing US$1 billion) as part of its Entrepreneurial Nation initiative, which includes allocating a AED 1 billion private equity fund to support UAE-based SMEs in strategic sectors.

This initiative echoes and aligns with the approach that we have started this year with investments in HotDesk and YAP, a digital banking platform, which reinforces our motivation to continue identifying and collaborating with startups that have the potential to bring disruptive and revolutionary solutions to the UAE. Emulating the UAE’s vision, we will equip these start-ups with comprehensive support to catapult them into unicorn status, in line with the national initiative.

As we conclude 2021 and welcome 2022, we aim to continually leverage the foundation that the UAE has built and take part in the future they have envisioned for the country by accelerating business growth and aiding start-ups and entrepreneurs from the ground up. mea-finance.com

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Shining through

C

ongratulations to all the Winners in the MEA Finance Awards 2021 and our thanks to all those who supported and participated this year’s event.

This, like 2020, has been another unusual year. While not locked down, or kept quite as separated from family, friends and colleagues; we have still been contenting with day-to-day uncertainties, such as where and when do we have to wear masks, can we travel and if so, will there be quarantine at the end of the voyage, or do we need to go into the office to work?

We have also had to consider macro uncertainties; will any economic recovery last, and for how long, will the great world powers help or hinder growth and how can we keep pace with the warp speed of digitisation in the past eighteen months? But despite these questions, the prevailing trend seems to be one of daring to be upbeat; a groundswell of hope which seems to be morphing into optimism.

With optimism in mind, the MEA Finance Awards recognize the institutions that have managed to persist with flair, agility and imagination amid the global fallout from the novel coronavirus. The financial institutions and technology firms who were conferred with awards, not only navigated a challenging economic climate but also managed to continue the upward trajectory of the industry, with the creation of innovative financial services solutions to better serve their customers.

The MEA Finance Awards have been a true success and we are proud to have had the opportunity to recognise and highlight the tireless efforts the many achievements of the industry over the past year.

Financial Institutions in the region have always embraced change, making an effort to stay ahead of the curve to keep themselves on par with financial institutions in more established markets. We at MEA Finance Magazine will continue to showcase your achievements and award the outstanding contributions that lead the industry forward.

Our congratulations again for all your accomplishments, and we are excited to see what you will showcase in the coming year.

Nap Estampador Group Commercial Director, MEA Finance

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MEA FINANCE AWARDS 2021

The MEA Finance Awards 2021 recognise the outstanding achievements of the regions banking and financial technology sector

T

he MEA Finance Awards 2021 were presented during a gala Organised by dinner at the Ritz Carlton, JBR Hotel, 3rd November 2021.

The very well attended occasion was graced with the presence of over 200 senior leaders in Banking, Finance, Wealth & Asset Management, Financial Organised by Organised by Technology and Advisory & Service Providers to the financial industry, making for a powerful concentration of the regions’ most influential and successful industry individuals.

The awards programme, organized by MEA Finance Magazine, benchmarks and Organised by underscores excellence by highlighting stand-out performance in banking and financial technology. It gives due Organised by recognition to institutions that have benefitted their clients, customers and economies with their innovations and Celebrating excellence in banking and finance excellence in the delivery of products and services at a time of frenetic competitive SPONSORS & PARTNERS activity and rapidly changing technology.

Hundreds of nominations were evaluated by a panel of judges, coming down to 70 categories, won by 45 Celebrating excellence in banking and finance banks and businesses plus 5 individual achievement awards with winners Celebratingexcellence excellence in in banking and finance Celebrating banking and finance decided after in-depth evaluation of their SPONSORS & PARTNERS skills in the execution of deals, application Celebrating excellence in banking and finance of wider principles and innovation in business and service provision, and the SPONSORS & PARTNERS SPONSORS & PARTNERS consideration of the needs of their range SPONSORS & PARTNERS of clients and customers.

GOLD SPONSOR The awards honouring the winners were presented in three parts, the first for technology vendors, the second half for GOLD SPONSOR banks, financial institutions and service providers, and the third for the individual achievement awards.

SILVER SPONSORS Finally, we want to offer our thanks and appreciation to our awards sponsors GOLD SPONSOR

SILVER SPONSORS

GOLD SPONSOR

GOLD SPONSOR

SILVER SPONSORS

SILVER SPONSORS

MEDIA PARTNERS

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MEDIA PARTNERS

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

SILVER SPONSORS

MEDIA PARTNERS

– Infosys Finnacle, ACI Worldwide, additiv & Finesse, whose support and presence before and during the event was an important addition to this special occasion.

The full list of the MEA Finance Awards 2021 winners:

21. Best Mobile Banking Service Provider - BPC 22. Best Financial Data Analysis Provider Course5 Intelligence Private Limited 23. Best Digital Transformation Provider Infosys Finacle for the Sharjah Islamic Bank transformation programme

Financial Services CATEGORIES Technology 1. Best Mobile Banking Service Implementation, Saudi Arabia - Al Rajhi Bank 2. Best Mobile Banking Service Implementation, UAE - First Abu Dhabi Bank 3. Best Neo Bank - Payit powered by FAB 4. Best Online Banking Service, Saudi Arabia - Al Rajhi Bank 5. Best Online Banking Service, UAE Mashreq 6. Best User Experience - Magnati & Al-Futtaim 7. Best Digital Transformation Implementation - Commercial Bank of Dubai

24. Best Retail Bank, UAE - Emirates NBD

53. B est Wealth Management Institution for HNWI’s - Deutsche Bank

28. Best Islamic Bank, Egypt - Banque Misr

54. B est Wealth Management Institution for Ultra HNWI’s - BNP Paribas Wealth Management

29. Best Commercial Bank - Commercial Bank of Dubai 30. Capital Markets Transaction of the Year - HSBC 31. Best M&A - Standard Chartered Bank 32. Best Bond Issue of the Year - MISR Capital 33. Best Sukuk Deal of the Year - GFH Financial Group 34. Best Takaful Provider - Noor Takaful

36. Best SME Bank - National Bank of Fujairah

13. Best Cybersecurity Provider - Help AG 14. Best Comms Infrastructure Provider Avaya 15. Best Core Banking Service Provider TEMENOS

51. Best Overall Wealth Management Service in the Middle East - Standard Chartered Bank

27. Best Islamic Bank, Bahrain, Bahrain Islamic Bank (BisB)

9. B e s t D i g i t a l B a n k i n g I n n o v a t i o n Implementation - ADIB

12. Best Payments Solutions Provider - ACI Worldwide

50. Best Private Bank in the Middle East -Barclays Private Bank

26. Best Islamic Bank, UAE, - Dubai Islamic Bank

35. Best Global Bank in the Middle East Standard Chartered Bank

11. Best Cloud Services Provider - Volante Technologies

49. Best Robo Advisory Investment Solution Commercial Bank of Dubai

52. B est Wealth Management Institution for HNWI’s, UAE - Century Private Wealth Limited

25. Best Retail Bank, Egypt - Banque Misr

8. Special Achievement in Digital Innovation - RAKBANK

10. Best Islamic Digital Banking Service Emirates Islamic

48. Best Investment Management Firm - Al Mal Capital Investment Management

37. Best Islamic Bank for SME’s - Emirates Islamic 38. Best Trade Finance Provider - National Bank of Fujairah 39. Best Cash Management Bank - HSBC 40. Best Treasury Management Services Banque Misr 41. Best Asset Management Firm - SEDCO Capital 42. Best International Real Estate Investment Firm - Walton Global

16. Best Digital Banking Innovation Provider Infosys Finacle

43. Best REIT Management Firm - Bonyan REIT Fund managed by Saudi Fransi Capital

17. Best Islamic Digital Banking Provider VeriPark

44. Best Investment Bank, Islamic - GFH Financial Group

18. Best Risk Management Solutions Provider - ACI Worldwide

45. Best Investment Bank, Conventional, Saudi Arabia - Saudi Fransi Capital

19. B e s t C S R P r o g r a m m e , F i n a n c i a l Technology Provider - DDCAP Group

46. Best Investment Bank, Conventional, UAE - HSBC

20. Best Islamic Fintech Solutions Provider DDCAP Group for ETHOS AFP

47. Best Brokerage Firm & Solutions Provider - Greenstone Equity Partners

55. B est Investment Consultancy Firm, UAE Century Financial 56. Best Investment Consultancy Firm, Saudi Arabia - SNB Capital 57. Best Digital Transformation Advisory Flaist 58. Best Ratings Agency - S&P Global Ratings 59. Best Research and Consultancy Firm, UAE - Century Financial 60. Best Law Firm - KARM Legal Consultants 61. Best Remittance and Foreign Exchange Company - Al Muzaini Exchange Co. 62. Best Sustainable Finance Initiative - Barclays Private Bank 63. Best Sustainable Lending - HSBC 64. Best Sustainable Asset Management - Dubai Green Fund 65. Best ESG Strategy - Dubai Islamic Bank

Leaders in Banking and Finance 66. O utstanding Leadership Award - Massimo Falcioni, CEO, Etihad Credit Insurance 67. B anker of the Year - Dr. Bernd van Linder, CEO, Commercial Bank of Dubai 68. L ifetime Achievement Award - Dr. Adnan Chilwan, Group CEO, Dubai Islamic Bank 69. B est Technology Leadership Award - Nidal Abou-Ltaif, President, Avaya International (EMEA-APAC) 70. B est Technology Executive of the Year for Financial Services - Mohamed Abdel Razek, CIO, Standard Chartered Bank

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Best Mobile Banking Service Implementation – Saudi Arabia Al Rajhi Bank

Al Rajhi Bank and their mobile first approach led them to become first to market in several areas allowing customers to enjoy end-to-end digital processes for regular banking transactions with digitally based customers growing through 2020 from 5.7 million to 7.9 million. The products and services available digitally include Personal Finance, Mortgage, Auto Lease, Takaful, Accounts, Cards, Investments, Marketplace and Remittances.

Best Mobile Banking Service Implementation – UAE First Abu Dhabi Bank

First Abu Dhabi Bank has enriched the concept of customer engagement through their value-driven Easy Payment Plan, a mobile solution that allows credit card customers, identified by machine learning analytics, to benefit the most from the plan by selecting payment options and receiving immediate confirmation through hyper-personalized messages to best engage customers. This approach has resulted in a fivefold increase in their sales.

Best Neo Bank Payit

Payit powered by FAB was established to promote financial inclusion of non-banking and low-income workers, and has successfully launched initiatives including the Digital Marketplace, Money On Demand, Domestic Help Payment, and Bill Collection. They have gone on to earn much positive recognition for their all-digital services with features such as uncomplicated customer onboarding and easy wallet top-up via credit card or bank transfer.

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MEA FINANCE AWARDS 2021

Best Online Banking Service – Saudi Arabia Al Rajhi Bank

Al Rajhi Bank provides a range of online products and services meeting the needs of their customer groups including Retail, Corporate, SMEs, Treasury and international businesses and achieving first to market status in products including Digital Promissory Notes (SANAD), online signing of mortgage contracts and End-to-End online opening of current accounts for retail and SME customers.

Best Online Banking Service - UAE Mashreq

Mashreq has pioneered new-to-market concepts and has launched innovative products and services and as an early adopter of new technologies, has successfully established the region’s first-ever digital engagement through the deployment of their AI engine, further enhancing their services and increasing their mobile banking efficiency across their digital, corporate, retail, international, treasury, and Islamic banking services.

Best User Experience

Magnati & Al-Futtaim Magnati & Al-Futtaim are recognised for superior consumer experience (CX) from relentless efforts to simplify processes and deployment of a seamless infrastructure. A first of its kind in the UAE, they successfully leveraged their partnerships enabling BNPL solutions rolled out at Toys R Us, IKEA, Marks & Spencer, ACE and Watsons, with strong customer up-take and creating a memorable in-store experience.

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Best Digital Transformation Implementation Commercial Bank of Dubai

Positioning itself as the ‘digital bank of now’, Commercial Bank of Dubai has been consistent with its digital transformation throughout. With its latest products offering instant digital accounts with no requirements for minimum balance or salary transfer, and a digital on-boarding experience instantly allowing customers a virtual credit card and a personal loan disbursed to their accounts in minutes, they have implementation reaching a digital adoption rate of 81%.

Special Achievement in Digital Innovation RAKBANK

RAKBANK has supported SMEs by investing in digital innovations to meet their digital banking service needs and by offering entrepreneurs complementary solutions. Their Quick Apply solution allows them to quickly open three types of accounts with a few simple clicks and to enjoy a host of other services including banking, accounting and business insurance benefits to help them manage their business.

Best Digital Banking Innovation Implementation ADIB

ADIB, a leading institution providing a full range of banking services and wealth management solutions with more than AED127 billion in assets under management, has been recognized for their world-class online, mobile, and phone banking services bringing clients seamless digital access to their accounts 24 hours a day and for establishing a solid track record in innovation including an award-winning range of financial products such as Ghina savings account.

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MEA FINANCE AWARDS 2021

Best Islamic Digital Banking Service Emirates Islamic Bank

Emirates Islamic Bank has digital banking as their strategic focus. They marked another milestone with the launch of a digital branch at the Mall of the Emirates in 2020, and through their digital service businessONLINE, both SME’s and large corporate and institutional clients can now manage their banking needs on a single secure, intuitive omni-channel platform that is also available as a Mobile Banking App for remote access.

Best Cloud Services Provider Volante Technologies

Volante Technologies has simplified the complexities of ISO 20022 migration, turning next-generation cross-border instant payments and open banking into business opportunities for financial services institutions within the MENA region, establishing their part in reshaping the digital financial landscape in the region through cloud-native and API-first payment modernisation, benefiting both large and small banks through access to multi-network managed service solutions.

Best Payments Solutions Provider ACI Worldwide

ACI Worldwide has a global footprint in digital payments, currently serving 6,000 organizations in 95 countries and processing high-volume payments annually, including millions in bills payment transactions, billions in consumer transactions and trillions in payments and securities transactions and with the launch of their Enterprise Payments Platform this year, they further helped banks and financial intermediaries to meet the challenges of modern payments.

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Best Cyber Security Provider Help AG

Help AG, as market evangelist pioneering new technologies, they have successfully protected the most critical assets of the region’s largest and most prestigious public & private organizations. Through their secure cloud enablement, Operations Technology security, utilization of Machine Learning to manage cyber threats and advanced cybersecurity services, they maintain their place as a lead player in the influential IDC Market.

Best Communications Infrastructure Provider Avaya

Avaya are recognized for supporting businesses to match their customer demands for reliable, instant and anytime access to their products and services. They are distinguished by their unmatched communications infrastructure service in the industry and by the breadth and depth of their offerings that enable their clients to handle highly complex enterprise requirements at scale in public, private and hybrid cloud, as well as on-premises.

Best Core Banking Service Provider Temenos

Temenos continues to provide the most successful and widely used digital core-banking solution, utilising cloud-native and agnostic technology. They bring the most extensive and richest set of banking functionality across retail, corporate, treasury, wealth management and payments, and are relied on for their market-leading and innovative products and services by over 1000 banks in more than 150 countries.

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MEA FINANCE AWARDS 2021

Best CSR Program – Financial Technology Provider DDCAP Group

DDCAP Group is the first and remains the only intermediary in the Islamic financial services industry to become a signatory to the United Nations’ Principles for Responsible Investments, aligning its Sustainable and Responsible Actions programme with multilateral initiatives to promote responsibility and awareness of ESG concerns, through their proprietary Sharia’a compliant financial system solutions, ETHOS AFP™

Best Digital Banking Innovation Provider Infosys Finacle

Infosys Finacle is behind the accelerated digital transformation of banks from over 100 countries, in turn serving more than a billion consumers and 1.7 billion accounts. Utilising their cloud-native solution suite and SaaS services, they have earned several banking awards for their clients in 2021, while strengthening their own industry position as one of the most awarded technology solution providers in the industry.

Best Risk Management Solutions Provider

ACI Worldwide

ACI Worldwide effectively provides crucial fraud prevention capabilities to protect customers from the increasingly challenging fraud environment.

Indeed, their success in this was exemplified in an instance where when helping a large institution in the region, within the six-hour timeframe of Model Generator deployment, the adaptive model was able to detect fraud to levels above and beyond the client’s existing rules-based approach.

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Best Islamic Digital Banking Provider VeriPark

VeriPark is recognised for the implementation of a corporate loan origination solution to meet credit application and approval requirements for a large Saudi Arabian bank.

It improved their clients’ efficiency in credit application and approvals, shortening loan closing time from 20 to 5 days, and eradicating 99% of manual errors while reducing operating costs by 40% to bring a tenfold monthly increase in processed applications.

Best Islamic Fintech Solutions Provider DDCAP Group

DDCAP Groups’ Sharia’a compliant financial technology, Ethos Asset Facilitation Platform, is a multiple award winning bespoke, real-time trade and post trade services platform which provides continuous coverage and enables clients worldwide to purchase from a responsible, diverse asset inventory via a secure, web-based portal. Recently expanded it now reaches areas including retail, SME, and private banking.

Best Mobile Banking Service Provider BPC Technologies

Driving innovation in mobility services in Abidjan and elsewhere in West Africa, BPC Technologies, through its open-loop platform, partnered with O-CITY to provide a contactless payment platform to address the needs of drivers, riders, vehicle owners, and financial institutions seeking transparency to facilitate frictionless lending processes, improving the quality of Ivory Coast’s public transport, while attracting funding rounds from leading global investors.

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MEA FINANCE AWARDS 2021

Best Financial Data Analysis Provider Course5

Utilizing the advances in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Course5 Intelligence provided actionable insights to banks by empowering them to meet the demands of the rapidly changing pace of the digital business world and enabling them to achieve higher top and bottom lines with improved customer satisfaction and business agility.

Best Digital Transformation Provider Infosys Finacle

Infosys Finacle were instrumental in modernising the IT architecture of Sharjah Islamic Bank, with their digital design solution focused on establishing an omni-channel environment and agility through automated processes and integration of multiple back-end systems. It went live in 2020, automating 51 banking services, 35 instant and paperless transactions and 16 offline BPM transactions, satisfying customers with seamless user experience and rich features across all banking functions.

Best Retail Bank – UAE

Emirates NBD

Emirates NBD, the winning bank maintains a continuous concentration on customer interactions and processes backed by a robust digital infrastructure to ensure seamless banking services, creating frictionless customer experiences. Despite recent large investments, they continue with their innovation, offering customers an unparalleled banking experience in the UAE by leveraging its digital expertise.

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Best Retail Bank – Egypt Banque Misr

BANQUE MISR has made multiple efforts and innovations in the past year to help their large and diverse customer base enjoy easier, quicker and more convenient retail banking services, from tailored offerings to achievements such as ascending from fifth place to first in gross customer on-boardings in the local retail market, maintaining this position for twelve consecutive months, to mention just two factors contribution to their win.

Best Islamic Bank – UAE Dubai Islamic Bank

Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB), the recipient of this award, were not content with being the first and largest institution of its kind in the UAE, they continued in their quest to make Islamic finance mainstream, and over the past year have taken significant strides to do so, such as unveiling their new positioning entitled #ReadyForTheNew representing their long-term vision to become the world’s most progressive Islamic financial institution.

Best Islamic Bank – Bahrain Bahrain Islamic Bank

BisB, Bahrain Islamic Bank, takes nothing for granted and continually strives to hold its position as the leading Sharia’s compliant bank in the Kingdom.

In recent times this bank has taken an avant-garde approach to digital innovations as well as a simplification strategy to completely transform the face of customer service, bringing seamless and intuitive customer experiences, while expanding into untapped retail customer segments such as the youth market.

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MEA FINANCE AWARDS 2021

Best Islamic Bank – Egypt Banque Misr

In recognition for both its efforts to boost commercial activity and support the country’s strategic objectives by offering a wide variety of Islamic finance packages created for Micro businesses and SME’s, such as Micro and Small Financing Murabaha and Financing Murabaha for working capital for companies, BANQUE MISR has underlined one of its national roles in helping to boost the Egyptian national economy and so earned this award.

Best Commercial Bank

Commercial Bank of Dubai With a wealth of products and services for the SME and commercial sector, Commercial Bank of Dubai continues to leverage its innovative bent to ease business and provide secure and convenient transaction services. Their being the first in the Middle East to provide buyer and seller led supply chain finance solutions through a single portal, with the platform also handling clients and their counterparts across the globe and with KYC metrics customized according to respective country’s regulation requirements, were key drivers leading to their win.

Capital Markets Transaction of the Year

HSBC

HSBC wins this award for the specifically mentioned deal and with recognition as the most active international bank for IPO’s in MENA in 2021, with 3 sizeable IPOs closed that in aggregate amounted to USD2.8 billion of capital raised. The deal attracting the winning attention was for their acting as Joint Global Coordinator on the 1.1 billion USD, IPO of ADNOC Drilling Company, the largest national drilling company in the Middle East by rig fleet size.

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Best M&A

Standard Chartered Bank Standard Chartered Bank is the winner with the deal getting the attention being the Sale of SHUAA’s 20% stake in MIPCO to Sojitz Corporation, leveraging their network to identify a suitable buyer and run an expedited sale process. Also taken into consideration were the Acquisition of a 49% stake in Aramco Oil Pipelines by a consortium led by EIG Global Energy Partners while providing M&A Advisory, Acquisition Financing and Hedging; and the sale of 100% of Alcazar Energy to a consortium led by China Three Gorges South Asia Investment with the transaction executed on an accelerated timeline.

Best Bond Issue of the Year Misr Capital

Misr Capital wins this award for its role in covering and guaranteeing the Sarwa Capital Holding Co. for Financial Investments inaugural sukuk issuance of 2.5 billion Egyptian Pounds by its subsidiary Sarwa Sukuk Company. Additionally, their having worked to become Egypt’s largest asset managers in less than 3 years since current management assumed office was an achievement worth noting in a wider context.

Best Sukuk Deal of the Year

GFH Financial Group

GFH Financial Group completed their own successful $500 Million US Dollar Sukuk, which was oversubscribed two-and-a-half times, with strong demand from international investors, who were allocated 47% of the offering with the remainder taken up by regional investors. The issuance created a diversified geographical and investor base for the Group and underscored market confidence in their financial strength, their performance and prospects.

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MEA FINANCE AWARDS 2021

Best Takaful Provider Noor Takaful

Won by Noor Takaful for completing an unprecedented transformation and a major acquisition during Lockdown as well as completing an ambitious programme to scale up every business line and modernise their product portfolio. They more than doubled their motor insurance customers, achieving faster service turn-around as well as receiving the Participating Insurer license granted by the Dubai Health Authority.

Best Global Bank in the Middle East Standard Chartered Bank

The winner, Standard Chartered Bank has a noticeable profile in the global banking industry across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, providing hard to match innovations and expertise steeped in local and regional insights.

With their initiatives in digital banking, sustainable finance, Islamic banking, gender equality and youth empowerment; all neatly balanced by their consistent commitment to support regional business markets.

Best SME Bank

National Bank of Fujairah National Bank of Fujairah (NBF) has operated an SME’s unit since 2004.

Now, with a dedicated team of relationship managers across the UAE, the segment has become a key pillar of the bank’s growth, contributing 24% of net profit last year. Always innovating, they co-created with SMEs, their Connect digital platform, a community where members can access a suite of business services provided by fellow SMEs such as HR services, legal support and marketplace management.

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Best Islamic Bank for SME’s Emirates Islamic Bank

Emirates Islamic Bank has a strong record of working with and developing products and services to assist and encourage small and growing businesses. Early in 2021 they expanded their Business Banking centre network to support SME’s by launching two new facilities that offer service propositions including Shari’a compliant working capital solutions, trade finance, business credit and debit cards and access to online banking via their newly launched “businessONLINE” platform.

Best Trade Finance Provider National Bank of Fujairah

Approaching their 30th year since incorporation, National Bank of Fujairah (NBF) as well as providing regular services such as avalisation, shipping guarantees and letters of credit, they also provide structured trade financing solutions specifically tailored to the individual and diversified needs of clients. Their trade financing portfolio contributes to 40% of the bank’s revenue and as such they play important role in setting the pace of the country’s trade growth and development.

Best Cash Management Bank HSBC

HSBC wins in this category for their launch of virtual debit cards for corporates In February 2021, a first in the Middle East. Combining technology, innovation and customer experience the virtual cards generate single-use card numbers, or ‘tokens’, for each transaction, protecting the primary card number and providing enhanced payment security while also helping with cash-flow forecasting and management as well as improving efficiency in managing collections and receivables and eliminating the need for petty cash.

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MEA FINANCE AWARDS 2021

Best Treasury Management Services Banque Misr

With their tailored solutions, not just restricted to products or services, Banque Misr are one of the top active primary dealers in public debt auctions with an outstanding secondary market position. In their last financial year, they achieved treasury highs that included attracting foreign currency resources of $10.5 Bn - a 44% YoY increase and allocated foreign currency for letters of credit transactions amounting to $5.4bn, a 63% increase the previous year.

Best Asset Management Firm Sedco Capital

Sedco Capital have offices in Riyadh, Dubai, London, and Luxembourg and more than $5 billion dollars in total assets under management. They became the first Saudi company, and the world’s first Shariah-compliant asset manager to become signatory to the UN Principles of Responsible Investment and continue to be recognized for their commitment to responsible investments, underpinned by their three Ps: principles, partnership, and performance, which have consistently delivered strong risk-adjusted returns.

Best International Real Estate Investment Firm

Walton International Group

Walton International Group, a leading land asset management firm for more than 40 years, opened their regional office in Dubai in 2019, allowing them to better serve their clients in the UAE and the wider GCC. With mindfulness of Shariah compliance, one of their first steps was working with a respected Sharia Consultancy to ensure their core product met these requirements, and in achieving endorsement allowing they expanded their reach continuing to develop their land-based investment products.

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Best REIT Management Firm Bonyan REIT

The Bonyan REIT fund, managed by Saudi Fransi Capital, launched 2018. Their pioneering approach, bringing new experiences including entertainment with dining and leisure offerings, gives customers reasons to visit malls. The result has been 224.6 million Saudi Riyals in paid-out dividends and as of December 2020 and the fair value of its properties was 1.92 billion Riyals. From inception, the Fund has generated a total annualized return of 13.94% and is one of the largest traded on Tadawul.

Best Investment Bank – Islamic GFH Financial Group

The winner of this award, GFH Financial Group, solidified its investment platform by focusing on strategic investments in the MENA region and global markets including the UK, Europe and North America. Concentrating on alternative asset classes including education healthcare, technology and real estate, they closed eight significant transactions, with investment banking activities generating revenues of US $84 million, constituting 24% of total revenues, contributing strong year-on-year growth.

Best Investment Bank Conventional – Saudi Arabia Saudi Fransi Capital

The winner of this award, Saudi Fransi Capital, successfully completed many diverse and significant transactions. They were mandated as sole book-runner and lead manager for a 5 billion Riyal, Tier1 sukuk for Banque Saudi Fransi and were financial advisor and underwriter for the 4.5 billion Riyal rights issue for Zain KSA, raising a total of 9.5 billion Riyal; as well as executing many other high-profile transactions in their market.

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MEA FINANCE AWARDS 2021

Best Investment Bank – Conventional - UAE HSBC

A leading investment bank in the region HSBC has recognised prowess in Debt and Equity Capital Markets and have been a key player in landmark transactions, such as assisting the execution of a 25-year power purchase agreement for Sudair Solar PV, acting as sole financial adviser to the Saudi Public Investment Fund for their 20% stake acquisition in the Red Sea Gateway Terminal and Programme Arranger and Dealer on the Saudi Aramco 6 billion USD, three-tranche inaugural Sukuk.

Best Brokerage Firm & Solutions Provider Greenstone Equity Partners

Since 2011, Greenstone Equity Partners have worked tirelessly for GCC based investors, arranging over 10,000 targeted roadshow meetings with fund managers globally. Their strategic solutions platform, including Capital Raising, Regulatory Compliance and Sharia-Compliant Structuring Programs, consistently fulfills the needs of local institutional investors and family offices wishing to gain access to global private investment opportunities, and to date have raised more than US$100 Billion.

Best Investment Management Firm

Al Mal Capital

With commitment to investment research, client due diligence, and performance excellence, since its founding in 2008 Al Mal Capital has been managing both MENA and a UAE funds, outperforming peers and beating the market. Their investment philosophy is very much centered on investing in businesses and their leadership teams, and as such they treat stocks as tokens of ownership, a philosophy that has been tried, tested and proven to consistently deliver excess returns.

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Best Robo Advisory Investment Solution Commercial Bank of Dubai

The winner, Commercial Bank of Dubai (CBD) became the first bank in the Gulf to offer a robo-advisory investment solution using algorithms to automate advising and investment recommendations and their “Investr-app” actively manages investment portfolios to deliver optimal risk-adjusted performance.

Best Private Bank in the Middle East Barclays Private Bank

A key differential for the winner, Barclays Private Bank, is a complimentary philanthropy and wealth advisory services that educates and supports clients with their personal aspirations. The breadth of their proposition includes their strategic solutions offering clients direct access to alternative investments in private equity, real estate, and hedge fund investments, as well as an in-house investment club, and access to corporate and investment banks.

Best Overall Wealth Management Service in the Middle East Standard Chartered Bank

Standard Chartered Bank has worldwide presence and has marked almost 65 years in the UAE. They consistently provide a comprehensive wealth management delivery model servicing Personal Banking, Private Banking, and Business Banking, enhancing clients’ portfolios based on their financial goals, risk appetite and investment timeframe, while actively enhancing their proposition with sustainable wealth offerings allowing clients to meet their personal financial goals while contributing to global concerns.

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Best Wealth Management Institution for HNWI’s in the UAE Century Private Wealth

Century Private Wealth is a DFSA regulated asset and wealth Manager, with their Global Infiniti Fund, a multi-strategy, macro hedge fund that maximising risk adjusted returns through a differentiated investment approach; just one example of where their portfolios have excelled through their prudence and expertise. Additionally, they will soon launch the MiddleEast’s first, DIFC domiciled, Nasdaq-based fund focusing on delivering enhanced returns over the Nasdaq-100® index.

Best Wealth Management Institution for HNWI’s in the Middle East & Africa Deutsche Bank

Deutsche Bank has recently seen client relationship numbers increase by almost 20%, following it’s radical transformation programme, emphasizing that wealth management would play a more decisive role. It’s global interconnectivity positions it to provide a full range of private banking services to its clients across the Middle East and Africa and whether measured by client relationships, profitability or headcount, their Wealth Management business has posted robust growth rates.

Best Wealth Management Institution for Ultra HNWI’s

BNP Paribas Wealth Management

BNP Paribas Wealth Management has a significant regional footprint and is one of the largest private banks in the Eurozone with 410 billion Euros of assets under management. A key feature is their Key Client Group is a dedicated structure for UHNWI and family offices, offering institutional caliber solutions through a dedicated team of relationship managers which, as well as providing the whole range of corporate finance advisory services, also arranges meetings with the banks top management during key macro-economic events.

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Best Investment Consultancy Firm - UAE Century Financial

Century Financial have been in the UAE for over thirty years, and with a service portfolio including investment consultancy, research & analysis, they are committed to a highly customer-centric approach, offering industry-leading expertise with cutting-edge technology and a core emphasis on educating investors to empower them in making informed decisions for their investment portfolios.

Best Investment Consultancy Firm – Saudi Arabia SNB Capital

SNB Capital have over US$ 68 billion in assets under management, countrywide presence, advanced technology infrastructure and a sophisticated control environment. They lead among their peers with a clear and welldefined vision, providing an excellent investment advisory and consultancy function stemming from a highly experienced investment team and wide coverage of product offerings.

Best Digital Transformation Advisory Flaist

Flaist are a San Fransisco based company with regional headquarters in Abu Dhabi, providing advisory and solutions for banks and financial institutions that are in the challenging final stages of their digitisation journey. Recognising that customer stickiness is stronger if they get the right experience, they provide banks with an opportunity to be contextual and develop a personalized relationships building loyalty and leading to more up-sell and cross-sell opportunities.

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Best Ratings Agency

Standard and Poors Global Ratings Over the past year, Standard and Poors Global Ratings have engaged extensively with the market, hosting webcasts and speaking engagements and responding to demands for clear, transparent methodologies on assessing ESG risks. Their GCC National Scale Ratings offers greater differentiation among credits within the GCC than is available on the global scale, contributing to better informed, more liquid and more efficient regional capital markets.

Best Research and Consultancy Firm - UAE Century Financial

Century Financial provide sound advice based on thorough research, which is regularly published on international platforms. Their expertise and deeply researched recommendations allow them to provide true objectivity in investment consultancy, and expertise to navigate market volatility successfully, all while operating on an international platform with disciplined monitoring of markets.

Best Law Firm

KARM Legal Consultants KARM Legal Consultants are a firm specialising in blockchain, security tokens, investment funds, Fintech, AI, robo-advisory, open banking and corporate M&A. They have been instrumental in drafting regulatory and guidance policies for the MENA and GCC regions as part of the Arab Monetary Fund Working Group and the MENA fintech association, also advising regulators such as the Central Bank of UAE, Securities and Commodities Authority, the Financial Services Regulatory Authority, ADGM, DFSA and DIFC.

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Best Remittance and Foreign Exchange Company Al Muzaini Exchange Co.

Al Muzaini Exchange Co. have been providing foreign exchange and remittance services in Kuwait since 1942. They operate 117 branches nationwide and the company is still expanding, intent on making financial services accessible to all customers with their mobile application, they are the preferred providers for the remittance and exchange needs of all communities. Their strong network, consistently excellent service and plans to expand more widely are key attributes of note.

Best Sustainable Finance Initiative Barclays Private Bank

The winner, Barclays Private Bank, incorporate ESG into investment decisions which means they also assess non-financial risks such as poor labour practices and climate change. Analysing ESG factors forms a critical part of their investment due diligence for all their discretionary investment products and thus they invest in companies with top operational quality and detailed quantitative ESG research that steers further qualitative interrogation.

Best Sustainable Lending HSBC

HSBC win in their roles as the joint ESG structuring bank, joint ESG coordinator, joint bookrunner and mandated lead arranger in the Etihad $1.2bn US Dollar sustainability linked ESG loan. This was a global first for aviation, and also the first sustainability linked loan regionally to include environmental, social and governance metrics, with the loan terms tied to reduce CO2 emissions, increase corporate governance and promote female participation.

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Best Sustainable Asset Management Dubai Green Fund LLC

Dubai Green Fund LLC is an initiative of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. Their sustainable strategy aims to manage 100 billion AED in green assets which will benefit Dubai and the UAE and contribute to globally reducing the risks of climate change and entice companies and asset managers to integrate ESG principals into their operations and investments.

Best ESG Strategy

Dubai Islamic Bank Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) were a joint lead manager and bookrunner for the Etihad Sustainability-Linked Sukuk and have also been involved in Sovereign and Corporate Green Sukuks. They apply ESG principles across all aspects of their business with examples including improved gender diversity and incorporating sustainable skills led by their Learning and Development Team, composed of their own Learning and Development for staff.

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Outstanding Leadership Award Massimo Falcioni

Massimo Falcioni has had an international career in financial services and credit insurance. He has led in multinationals and government companies, successfully fostering job creation, commerce and economic growth, underpinned by ethics, innovation and inclusive leadership. In 2019, he was ranked 13th in Forbes Middle East’s Top 50 International CEO’s and is the CEO at Etihad Credit Insurance (ECI), THE UAE’s Federal Government export credit agency, where under his leadership, ECI developed the firstever Artificial Intelligence credit rating model in the region in partnership with modeFinance, they launched the first online trade credit insurance for SMEs in the Middle East and became the first sovereign export credit agencies in the Middle East to offer Shariah-compliant export credit insurance and guarantee solutions.

Banker of the Year

Dr. Bernd Van Linder Dr. Bernd Van Linder, CEO, Commercial Bank of Dubai, started his career as a research scientist for Phillips Electronics before moving into banking with ABN AMRO where he worked for nine years becoming Executive Director.

He then continued with his career with the next ten years at Saudi Hollandi Bank as the General Manager for Treasury, then as the Chief Executive Officer. With experience in retail, commercial and corporate banking, an excellent track-record in risk management, treasury and leading strategic change, as well as an MBA in Financial Management and a PhD in Artificial Intelligence from the University of Utrecht, he is ideally set for today’s banking environment.

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Best Technology Leadership Award Nidal Abou-Ltaif

Nidal Abou-Ltaif, President EMEA & APAC at Avaya International is one of the regions most respected and successful technology business leaders, helping transform his company from a niche player into a business communications leader. He led them successfully into key verticals including finance, where they now play a vital role helping banks with their digitisation, providing solutions and seamless composed experiences for customers and employees at a time of hectic change and competition. Personally involved as Avaya empowered the region’s top public and private entities to deliver experiences that matter during a time of increased transformation and reduced travel, he galvanized his workforce into enabling work-from-anywhere programs ensuring business continuity for major businesses across MENA, while also safeguarding jobs.

Best Technology Executive of the Year for Financial Services Mohamed Abdel Razek

Mohamed Abdel Razek has held the position of Regional Chief Information Officer for Standard Chartered Bank in Africa and the Middle East (AME), as well as CIO of the bank’s Islamic Banking business since September 2019. As of mid-2020, Mohamed also joined the Bank’s Pakistan’s Board as a Non-Executive Director and is also on the Advisory Board of Bahrain FinTech Bay. His expertise and leadership in IT were integral to their inauguration of digital-only banks in eight African markets, in securing operational integrity throughout the region and implementing robust cybersecurity measures with efficient technological input which, due to his efforts in ensuring the soundness of the Bank’s internal technological frameworks, Standard Chartered was able to implement lasting remote working policies following the abatement of the pandemic.

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Lifetime Achievement Award Dr. Adnan Chilwan

Dr. Adnan Chilwan is recognised as a visionary and an expert in the field, as well as recipient of multiple awards including ranking #1 “Top Indian Leader making an impact in the Middle East 2019”. He has been hailed by stakeholders across the globe as a key spokesperson spearheading the progression, development, and acceptance of Islamic finance, making it his personal and professional goal to establish Islamic Banking and Finance as a global norm rather than an alternative. Throughout his career has enjoyed success in transforming businesses and is now the CEO of a pioneering Islamic bank, DIB Group, where he has made incredible progress in advancing the interests of both Shari’a finance and Dubai Islamic Bank (DIB) underpinning his place as a leading figure in Islamic Finance.

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LIFESTYLE

The BMW Concept XM – power and luxury beyond all conventions

A

t Art Basel’s 2021 Miami Beach show, BMW M GmbH presented an expressive new vehicle concept on the global stage for the first time. The BMW Concept XM looks ahead to the most powerful BMW M car ever to go into series production, which is set to begin at the end of next year. At the same time, the BMW Concept XM shines the spotlight on standout aspects of the M brand. Elec- trification underpins an extraordinary driving experience which allows the driver to both glide along in near silence and enjoy the time-honoured pleasure of high performance, M-style. The BMW Concept XM provides a first glimpse of the new front-end design for BMW’s forthcoming luxury-class models. It will also introduce its audience to a highly progressive and distinctive take on BMW X model design and an all-new form of luxury and sense of space for the interior.

The series-production model – the BMW XM – will be built from the end of 2022 at BMW Group Plant Spartanburg in the USA,

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR AND PUBLISHER Kenneth Mitchen ken.mitchen@mea-finance.com GROUP COMMERCIAL DIRECTOR Nap Estampador nap.estampador@mea-finance.com Tel : +971 50 100 5488 DIRECTOR Andrew Cover andrew.cover@mea-finance.com Tel: +971 50 931 3236

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BMW Concept XM

the most important sales market for the new high-performance car. BMW M will therefore be introducing its first standalone vehicle since the legendary BMW M1 in the year it celebrates its 50th anniversary.

The BMW XM will be available in plug-in hybrid form, M Hybrid, only and exclusively as an M model.

The bold exterior styling of the Concept XM reflects the car’s exceptional performance attributes: dynamism, agility and precision, plus an all-electric range of up to 80 km. The newly developed M Hybrid drive system in the BMW Concept XM brings together a V8 engine and a highperformance electric motor to develop maximum output of 550 kW/750 hp and peak torque of 1,000 Nm (737 lb-ft). The first

EVENTS AND MARKETING MANAGER Cris Balatbat crissyb@mea-finance.com Tel: +971 58 594 4818 ADMIN AND FINANCE MANAGER Marilyn Nainque marilyn@mea-finance.com Tel: +971 58 5025836

electrified vehicle from BMW M GmbH in the high-performance segment is therefore pointing the way for the future of the brand.

“The BMW Concept XM represents a complete re-imagining of the highperformance car segment,” says Franciscus van Meel, CEO of BMW M GmbH. “It underlines the ability of BMW M GmbH to break with established conventions and push boundaries in order to offer fans of the brand the ultimate driving experience.

The series-production car – the first pure BMW M model since the legendary BMW M1 – also shows how we are approaching the step-by-step electrification of our brand.”

BMW M goes its own way in the luxury segment.

The BMW Concept XM sees BMW M GmbH forging a distinctive path in the luxury segment. The car’s exterior majors on presence and extrovert appeal. Inside the car, a special take on the driver-focused cockpit for which M models are renowned meets an all-new rear compartment design: with its high-comfort seats and illuminated, sculptural headliner, the M Lounge offers passengers a luxurious retreat.

“The design of the BMW Concept XM is an extravagant statement by BMW M in the heart of the luxury segment,” says Domagoj Dukec, Head of BMW Design.

“It has a unique identity and embodies an expressive lifestyle like no other model in the BMW line-up.”

FEATURE CONTRIBUTORS: Adrian Murdoch, Mushtak Parker, Walter Sebele editorial@mea-finance.com

WEB ASSISTANT Marie Orayan web@mea-finance.com

Banking and Finance news in the MEA market

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