Emirates NBD wins ‘Best SME Internet Banking Service’ at Banker Middle East Product Awards 2013

Emirates NBD, a leading bank in the region, announced today that its Business Banking segmenthas won the Banker Middle East Product Award 2013, for ‘Best SME Internet Banking Service,’ further building on itssuccess last year, when it won the 2012 award for ‘Best SME Insurance Product.’The award recognises Emirates NBD as a key supporter of the UAE’s SME segment, which is a vital part of the UAE economyand a strong contributor to the country’s GDP.

Emirates NBD Business Banking has been recognised for its successful adaptation of smartBUSINESS corporate online banking platform to suit the evolving needs ofsmall and medium-sized enterprises, thus allowing small scale businesses to also avail all features and benefits of the smart BUSINESS platform.

Organised by CPI Financial, the Banker Middle East Product Awards,recognise banking products and services that are “either exceptionally innovative or have generated excellent financial results and/or transference of market share.”

“We are delighted to receive the award for ‘Best SME Internet Banking Service’ for 2013, which acknowledges our commitment to providing excellence and cutting-edge corporate and retail banking services through investments in technology,”said Vikas Thapar, Head of Business Banking, EmiratesNBD.“Small and medium-sized enterprises are among the most resilient business segments in the United Arab Emirates, and smartBUSINESSis perfectly positionedto enhance their productivity and efficiency in a highly secure and convenient manner.This award is a testament to the success of the Business Banking team’sefforts to facilitate business processfor SMEsby letting them conduct their banking operations anytime and anywhere.”

“smart BUSINESS is designed to facilitate corporate andinstitutional clients,manage their account access andtransactions online,” said Samir Sahu, Deputy General Manager, Transaction Banking Services, Emirates NBD. “Over the past few years, the platform has been further developed to serve the needs of SMEs as we would like SMEs to benefit from the available to Corporates. We have seen SMEs adopt the online experience as a preferred channel for transactions.”

Emirates NBD established its Business Banking division in 2009, which has grown over the past few years into a market leader with 24 per cent market share. The main scope of its activities focuses on transaction banking, cash management services, remittances, lending propositions, advisory services, dedicated relationship managers, specialized packages for SMEs, and dedicated teams for products, assets, trade and investments.

According to official statistics, the UAE has more than 230,000 small and medium-sized companies that contribute more than 30 per cent to the country’s GDP, and employ in excess of 42 per cent of its workforce.