UAE Banks Federation Reviews Progress

The Board of Directors of the UAE Banks Federation, a professional body representing 49 member banks operating in the UAE, has held its second Board of Directors meeting of the year.

The agenda for the meeting included an update on progress of the launch of the Federation’s contribution to the Smart Government initiative, its action plan for 2015, and the adoption of a Customer Charter.

Top of the agenda was the Smart Wallet project, which is being co-ordinated by the federation to implement a nationwide payments system through smart phones and other hand held devices. This is a major element of the UAE’s Smart Government initiative to promote a more inclusive and efficient form of money transfer in the country. The UAE Banks Federation has been working closely with different entities and organisations, including all stakeholders, to ensure progress remains on track.

The board, which is chaired by AbdulAziz Al Ghurair, also reviewed co-operation of member banks with Al Etihad Credit Bureau which began operations in September, and board members agreed on its importance and the benefits it will bring to the UAE banking sector and the economy as a whole.

Among other issues discussed was the need for banks to further enhance their support for the SME sector, given its importance to the economy and the high priority being given to it by the UAE government.

During the current year, the federation has worked on a number of initiatives to strengthen the banking sector in the UAE. One of these was the Interim Margin Lending Facility launched by the Central Bank in April 2014, which provides funding on an overnight basis for banks needing short term liquidity support which are able to provide eligible collateral.

Board members expressed their gratitude to Central Bank and satisfaction with the new lending facility and agreed that it has added an important further layer of stability to the banking sector.

The board also reviewed progress on the Customer Charter draft that will be adopted by the Federation and its members in the coming months. This follows the Code of Conduct for UAE banks adopted in 2013, and sets out the rights and responsibilities of bank customers in the UAE.

Abdulaziz Al Ghurair said, "The federation achievements and milestones are with no doubt reflected in the strong performance banks are showing in UAE, the net income of major UAE banks exceeded expectations as profits grew 25 percent during the first nine months of 2014 due to the economic growth and lower provisions for bad debts.

Banks now have enough capital to meet further economic requirements; where comfortable liquidity, growth in assets and profitability are expected to continue over the next few years.

The board gave its approval for the proposed budget for 2015, and welcomed Hamed Kazem, representative of Commercial Bank of Dubai, and thanked his predecessor, Yacoub Hassan, for his contribution over the years.

The UAE Banks Federation has again invited bank members to its second annual conference, The Middle East Banking Forum, which is taking place in Dubai on the 17th November.

The invitation-only conference is focusing this year on banking innovation in the digital world, with Dan Schatt, Chief Commercial Officer at Stockpile and former General Manager of Financial Innovations at PayPal as the keynote speaker, among many other regional and international participants.