Arab Bank is the best bank of this year in the Middle East. CEO Randa Sadik explains how investments in technology and the next generation of customers have stimulated its growth.
Global finance: What factors shaped the results of the Arab bank last year?
Randa Sadik: Arab Bank posted solid performance in 2024, supported by wide growth through geographies and corporate segments. Our solid results were supported by a well -diverse expansion of basic banking income with interest -free interests and income contributing to the sustainable growth in net operating profit.
The strategic emphasis of the Arab bank on expansion beyond its internal market has continued to bear fruit, with strong dynamics in the region of the high growth CCG and international markets. Our global network and our digital transformation have been essential to stimulate the value between companies, consumers and the banking segments of wealth management.
The results underline the effectiveness of our long -term strategy, which depends on geographic diversification and income flow to ensure resilience and capture intermediate market opportunities.
GF: What milestones of Arabic digitization has the bank reach?
Sadik: We have advanced our native applications in the cloud and accelerated our API -focused development. AI agents will also increase this process by integrating more value -added services for our customers.
For our corporate activities, we have redesigned our process of creating credits and approval to allow end -to -end digital flows which treat new credit applications more quickly, from CCG countries. We have also reorganized the user interface of our commercial financing company platform and added new services.
We continued to focus on improving the Arabi then, our digital SME application and, among other things, launched digital integration for SME customers in Jordan – a large regional differentiating – alongside a new tailor -made digital loyalty program and a management offer of E2E PME cards. We have sent 91% of all SME transactions to Jordan via various digital channels.
Finally, the bank launched Omnify, a bank as a service [BaaS] platform. It allows companies to integrate Arab Bank APIs into their digital applications and allows the bank to take advantage of the opportunities of new regulatory executives in open banking.
GF: What is the Arab bank doing to reach the next generation of customers?
Sadik: We propose a well -balanced and fully integrated value proposal. We understand that young customers expect much more than traditional banking services. They are looking for personalized and digital experiences that align themselves with their dynamic lifestyles and evolving requirements.
Our young people focused on young people start early. The junior program begins by instilling financial awareness of children and evolving towards the supply of tailor -made banking experiences to adolescents. The Shabab program focuses on young people and young adults, helping them to build a solid financial future via free banking services, exclusive benefits and a holistic financial proposal. The centerpiece of engagement with this key segment is our mobile arabi application, which provides seamless and end -to -end digital trips extending to integration, investments and credit facilities.
Just as important is our dedication to sustainability. Thanks to initiatives of financial literacy, continuous innovation and environmental responsibility, we remain relevant to young generations and actively shall a more inclusive and lasting future.
GF: What role did the AI play in your performance in 2024 and what will it contribute in 2025?
Sadik: In addition to our digital achievements, Arab Bank continued its ambition to become an IA-STHO organization, capitalizing on our rich set of data to automate and personalize flows based on AI to help our staff in their daily tasks and accelerate their decision-making process, offering our customers both a richer and more personalized customer commitment and an autonomous struggle.
By 2024, Arab Bank had more than 20 AI-ML models in production covering a range of applications, from obtaining better information on customers to improve our decision-making and detection process. Most of our models have been developed internally in a robust governance framework. However, we have also injected third -party -based third -party offers, which allow us to benefit from the scale of market data, as for customer service chatbots, cyberrencies and fraud alerts.
For 2025, we will continue to deploy these models while integrating cases of generative-AI uses to automate routine tasks, digitize risk management and improve personalized services for customers. As a prerequisite, we offer the Arab bank staff a program of effective learning and development to capitalize on this new opportunity.
The most important examples include, without limiting themselves, providing internal chatbots to leading staff to access information on products and policies more quickly, supporting their training needs and allowing a quick decision process