QIB awarded ‘Best SME Bank in Qatar’ by Global Finance

Qatar Islamic Bank (QIB) was named ‘Best SME Bank in Qatar’ in Global Finance’s Best SME Banks Awards, in recognition of its continuous efforts to provide seamless banking solutions to small and medium enterprises.
Global Finance, a New York-based magazine, has launched its new SME Bank Awards Program in recognition of the banks’ efforts in supporting SMEs during a challenging time. According to Global Finance, small and medium enterprises were hit the hardest by the COVID-19 pandemic and they will play a critical role in any country’s recovery.
The new recognition highlights QIB’s excellence in providing innovative banking solutions and supporting small and medium-sized enterprises in Qatar. It also reflects the bank’s outstanding response to the COVID-19 pandemic delivering the safest, most trusted, and effective banking services to customers.
QIB’s SME offering includes a host of innovative products and services catered toward fulfilling the banking requirements of this vital sector, including the Aamaly (My Business) programme, which offers tailored products and services to SMEs in Qatar.
The programme offers entrepreneurs financial services, advice, and guidance, and features several benefits for SMEs, including a special SME-dedicated banking centre, 24-hour banking, WPS integration, cash and cheque collection, accounts, and time deposits, together with flexible lending and financing options. The Bank continues to enhance the Corporate Mobile App and Corporate Internet Banking in order to provide a better customer journey.
The bank has continued to contribute significantly to Qatar Development Bank’s (QDB) Al Dhameen Program, which encourages SMEs to acquire suitable financing from banks to grow their businesses, in addition to other initiatives launched by QDB to offer easier access to financing for Qatari SMEs.
QIB also played a significant role in the proactive national response to the economic implications of the COVID-19 crisis on SMEs and has immediately postponed financial instalments for SMEs. The bank continues to offer financial facilities and ease restrictions on SMEs to help mitigate the impact of the pandemic on the country’s private sector.
Moreover, QIB has continued its path toward accelerating the digitization of SME financing and launching new products providing a full package of financial solutions and services to its SME clients. These include Merchant Acquiring Services (POS), mobile POS, and online Wages Protection System (WPS) for the automatic processing of monthly payrolls, as well as new co-branded corporate credit cards in collaboration with Ooredoo, and corporate deposit cards.
Commenting on the new recognition QIB Wholesale Banking Group General Manager Tarek Fawzi said, “We are pleased to be recognized for our efforts to help spur SME activity during a challenging time. It is a unique and important time to give the financial institutions that best serve SMEs the opportunity to be honoured for the services and support they provide. We are committed to providing tailor-made banking solutions to meet the specific financial needs of small and medium enterprises and to contribute to the growth and diversification of the local economy. Winning this award is a true recognition of our dedication to supporting SMEs in line with Qatar’s National Vision 2030 and the government’s commitments to the development of a strong private sector.”
Global Finance announced its selection for the inaugural SME Banks awards based on this year’s performance from April 1, 2020, to March 31, 2021. Criteria for choosing the winners included knowledge of SME markets and needs, breadth of products and services, market standing, and innovation.

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