Bank ABC named Middle East’s Best Bank for Innovation in Digital Banking by The Banker for the second time

(MENAFN- Bank ABC) Manama, Bahrain: Bank ABC, one of MENA’s leading international banks, has been declared the Best Bank for Innovation in Digital Banking in the Middle East in 2024 by The Banker – Financial Times. This esteemed award comes on the back of the accelerated execution of the Group’s multi-year digital transformation programme, which resulted in pathbreaking innovations and digitisation initiatives that have redefined banking across the Bank’s global footprint.
The recent years have witnessed major transformation across Bank ABC’s entire business, including its Wholesale Banking business. Corporate and institutional customers now experience a seamless banking journey, from automated account opening to instant access to Bank ABC’s products via an AI-powered Corporate Banking portal.
Commenting on this remarkable recognition, Bank ABC Group CEO, Sael Al Waary, said, “We are honoured to win The Banker’s Innovation in Digital Banking award for the Middle East for the second time. This victory reflects our unwavering commitment to deliver a new kind of banking experience in the region. Our agile digital strategy leverages the latest technology and innovation to enhance efficiency and deliver exceptional value to our stakeholders. I would like to thank The Banker – FT for recognising Bank ABC’s vision and execution, and my thanks to the Bank ABC Team for their unwavering commitment to excellence.’
Among its digital achievements, in 2023 the Bank introduced ABC Trade, a cloud-based platform offering an enriched documentary trade product suite, with end-to-end life-cycle functionality across all trade instruments. Alongside, the Bank has consistently enhanced its supply chain finance and cash management platforms to address evolving customer needs.
Furthermore, Bank ABC has deployed an AI-powered Frontline Platform enabling its relationship managers to generate tailored presentations, provide call summaries with key insights, and load financial statements to give a 360-degree view of existing and prospective customers, and thereby offer clients more personalised solutions.
At the end of 2023, Bank ABC was the first bank in the Middle East to introduce faster cross-border payments to specific trade corridors for corporates and financial institutions utilising Kinexys Digital Payments (formerly JPM Coin), a block-chain based permissions system that serves as a payment rail and deposit account. Developed in close collaboration with the Central Bank of Bahrain and JP Morgan, this next-generation payment service enables fund transfers between countries in under two minutes, significantly reducing traditional processing times.
A cornerstone of its vision to be MENA’s International Bank of the Future, Bank ABC's digital innovation strategy has accelerated core business growth and driven a surge in net profit to reach US$215 million for the nine months ended 30 September 2024, representing a 17% growth over the corresponding period last year.
Meanwhile, the Bank’s digital mobile only retail arm, ila Bank, has also shown tremendous progress, introducing revolutionary solutions such as a market-first digital ‘Invest in Government Securities’ feature and an exclusively digital Shari’a-compliant digital offering – alburaq. Furthermore, it continued to expand its footprint in MENA with launch of tailored solutions in Jordan and a version of the app in Egypt.

MENAFN23122024005520012214ID1109023914