The National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) & Bahrain Development Bank (BDB) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to develop products and funding solutions for the SME sector. The signing ceremony was held at NBB Head Quarters in Manama.

This partnership comes with the two parties’ commitment to continuously support start-ups and SMEs, through providing financing solutions that meet the sector’s needs.

Commenting on the partnership, Dalal Al Qais, Group Chief Executive Officer at Bahrain Development Bank said:” We are proud to be partnering with a leading financial institution in the Kingdom in the likes of NBB, to further expand our SMEs offering and services which play a vital role in developing the national economy. This comes with BDB’s long experience as a specialised development financial institution with an aim to provide support to SMEs growth and this comes in line with the bank’s strategy for the upcoming period. We are also looking forward, through this partnership, to enhance the SMEs overall Ecosystem in Bahrain and to increase their growth”.

From his end, Zied Jalali, Head of Structured Finance and Transaction Banking at NBB, said: “Through this partnership, we aim to provide a package of solutions ranging from funding for the purpose of on-lending to SMEs, to payment and trade finance solutions. This partnership is another step in NBB’s ESG journey and is in line with our commitment to create a positive impact on the Kingdom’s economy and realise our SME financing and sustainability goals.”

Arif Janahi, Head of Commercial and SMEs at NBB, stated: “Following the directives of His Royal Highness, Prince Salman bin Hamad Al Khalifa, Crown Prince and Prime Minister, we are proud to be working alongside Bahrain Development Bank to further enhance the banking solutions necessary to boost this vital sector. NBB and BDB share a common purpose; to identify products and services which fill the gaps in the market, and can further enable the growth and development of the SME sector in Bahrain.” The two institutions can complement each other to provide an array of products and services for the various segments within the SME sector”.

SMEs and start-ups are considered the backbone of the Kingdom’s local economy and this partnership comes in line with NBB & BDB strategies to continuously support the sector.