Bank Albilad - Annual report

Bank Albilad’s Corporate Banking Group (CBG)

is responsible for establishing and maintaining the Bank’s relationships with Corporate Customers,

Funds and Financial Institutions in addition to the Syndicated Loans and Global Transaction Services (GTS).

In 2022, Bank Albilad achieved strong performance in Trade Finance Operations which generated a higher level of commissions and fees. This helped the Bank significantly increase its market share in corporate banking. By year-end, Corporate Banking had achieved growth in assets of 15.8%, and a 70% year-on-year rise in the volume of trade finance business.

As an Islamic bank, in 2022 we have continued to specialise in developing and providing corporate financing solutions that are fully complied with the Islamic Shariah rules. This has helped us establish an increasingly significant role within the Kingdom’s corporate banking sector.

In 2022, we established a new Business Unit with a strategic goal of supporting the delivery of Vision 2030 initiatives by exploring strategic business opportunities with Government and Quasi-Government entities. This has a particular focus on existing and new companies with shareholding by Public Investment Fund (PIF) as well as the Governmental entities, to create a value proposition that drives profitability.

One area of particular emphasis has been supporting the Kingdom’s growing MSME sector. This included formalising a partnership with the newly established SME Bank to increase the availability of funds directed to finance this sector.

This reflects the core values of ‘Initiative and Innovation’ which is at the heart of our Corporate Banking offer.

This is vital not just for Bank Albilad, but for the Kingdom as a whole. The MSME sector is identified as of central importance in Vision 2030, driving the economic success of the wider Kingdom. This year, we have worked alongside MSME businesses to develop new products and services that meet their requirements. Corporate banking has historically been delivered in a more traditional manner than retail. However, our strategy in 2022 has been to apply some of the learning and innovation around digitalisation developed through our retail work to corporate banking in general and MSME support in particular.

This core value has also underpinned our approach of seeking to develop alliances with major international banks to capture more learning about the successful digitalisation of business banking services and to learn from international best practice.

This year we have seen significant growth across the entire business sector, with specific development in industries such as real estate, manufacturing, and hospitality. As the Saudi economy continues to grow, MSME businesses will grow too. This means that with the right products and services in place, Bank Albilad is well-positioned to continue to expand its market share and to both support a growing economy, and benefit from it.

In real estate, in particular, we have built upon the cooperation agreement signed with Wafi in 2021 to facilitate financing to support off-plan real estate projects. Our involvement reduces project risk for developers and ultimately supports the Kingdom’s strategic objective of increasing housing supply and homeownership. This is one of several initiatives to build the collaborative relationships that we need for the future. As we move into 2023, our growth in market share for MSME support will also be supplemented by an increasingly proactive strategy to provide financial services for major blue-chip companies. This balanced approach will reduce business risk and maximise the value delivered for shareholders, customers, and the economy.

Subsidiaries