4 Major BankTech partnerships in MENA in August 2024

By Gloria Methri

BankTech is the utilisation of technology to deliver financial services to customers. Its significance has grown in the banking industry, prompting substantial investments from banks. FinTech’s emergence has compelled banks to adjust to evolving customer preferences, with banking technology leading the charge.

From online banking to mobile payments and cryptocurrency, BankTech spans a broad spectrum of offerings. Across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, the convergence of banking and technology, commonly referred to as BankTech, is witnessing remarkable growth. These partnerships serve as catalysts for development, fostering a conducive environment for innovation and growth.

Listed below is a compilation of 4 August-specific BankTech deals that occurred in MENA: 

• National Bank of Fujairah and iGTB

Intellect Global Transaction Banking (iGTB) has partnered with t, he National Bank of Fujairah (NBF), a UAE-based full-service Corporate Bank, to enhance its digital capabilities. This deal marks the first cloud-managed service for iGTB in this region.

NBF currently serves corporates and SMEs through its network in the UAE, providing financial services to optimise commercial opportunities and achieve sustainable growth for its clients. With the eMACH.ai Digital Transaction Banking solution, the National Bank of Fujairah can offer their clients a suite of comprehensive solutions backed by Innovative Decision-Making, Enhanced Digital Capabilities and Cloud-powered Excellence.

• Citi and Network International

Network International has signed a referral arrangement with Citi to enhance payment experiences for the bank’s corporate clients by leveraging Network’s comprehensive omnichannel payment solutions.

The referral arrangement will empower Citi to offer its corporate clients better payment management solutions, including enhanced transaction efficiency, increased security, and seamless payment integration capabilities.

The collaboration enhances Network’s position as a preferred partner for payment solutions amongst UAE financial institutions while benefitting from an expanded market presence.

• Boubyan Bank and Temenos

Kuwait’s Boubyan Bank has selected Temenos to modernize its core banking systems. The bank is migrating to Temenos’ core banking platform for Retail, Corporate Banking and Wealth Management to enhance business agility and operational efficiency.

Boubyan chose Temenos to access the latest banking capabilities with Islamic banking functionality on an open, cloud-native, API-first architecture. This will enable the bank to accelerate the launch of new products and deliver a personalized experience to customers. In addition, the Temenos platform is scalable to support Boubyan’s growing customer base and future growth.

Temenos’ agile product-building capabilities will help the bank quickly launch new products, capitalize on new market opportunities, and respond to evolving market conditions.

• National Bank of Iraq and Codebase

The National Bank of Iraq (NBI) has launched an advanced mobile banking application in partnership with Codebase Technologies using its Digibanc platform. This initiative provides NBI’s customers with seamless, secure, and user-friendly access to a comprehensive range of financial services through their handheld devices.

The newly launched app has already seen a substantial uptake, with more than 100,000 users adopting the platform. The app has achieved a more than 43% retention rate, indicating high levels of customer satisfaction and ongoing engagement. Digibanc’s pre-built feature-based components facilitated a swift market launch, enabling NBI to offer its customers the latest in digital banking technology quickly and efficiently.