Abdullah Al-Tuwaijri:

  • Boubyan Bank Recognized as a Banking Model in a Study at a World-Leading Global University
  • The Bank's Growth and Excellence Are Driven by a Clear Vision, a Professional Team, and an Early Investment in Digital Transformation
  • From 2009 to 2020, Boubyan Bank Jumped from the Last Place to the 3rd among Kuwaiti Banks
  • Regional and International Expansion Reinforced the Group’s Presence through the Acquisition of BLME and the Launch of Nomo Bank

Today, Boubyan Bank represents one of the most prominent banking success stories in Kuwait and the region, after having succeeded throughout the years to cement its position as a pioneering banking model in Islamic banking, digital services, and corporate innovation, which was demonstrated during the hosting of the bank's Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Abdullah Al-Tuwaijri, by Stanford University Graduate School of Business to participate in a specially dedicated lecture to discuss the growth and success story of Boubyan Bank “Boubyan Case Study”, as part of one of its specialized academic programs on leadership and institutional transformation in MENA, which explored the bank’s journey as a practical example of transformation, growth, and innovation in the banking sector.

Al-Tuwaijri’s participation came as part of the “Systems Leadership and Business Transformation: A MENA Lens” course, to complement the academic study. The course examined Boubyan Bank’s experience and strategic transformation under academic supervision, as part of the program dedicated to Stanford's MBA students.

This participation further extends Boubyan Bank's footprint in global academic platforms, since this is the second time Stanford University invites one of Boubyan’s executives to give a lecture on his experience with institutional transformation and the banking sector, following their 2022’s hosting of Boubyan Bank’s Vice-Chairman & Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Adel Abdul Wahab Al-Majed.

This academic program hosted some elite global executives and decision makers, and it included sessions that featured several prominent figures including the Ambassador of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to the United States of America, Her Excellency Reema bint Bandar Al Saud, General Electric’s former CEO, Jeff Immelt, and His Excellency, the Minister of Economy and Planning of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Faisal Alibrahim. The program is under the supervision of Lecturers in Management Robert Siegel and Dr. Ibrahim Almojel.

** The Journey of the Launch and Transformation

Al-Tuwaijri stated: “Boubyan Bank’s experience represents a real-world model for institutional transformation based on a clear vision, disciplined implementation, and investment in competent cadres, all while staying customer-focused and maintaining adaptability.”

He added: “During the period from 2009 to 2020, the bank climbed from the 9th to the third place among Kuwaiti banks as a result of integrated efforts that included institutional restructuring, improving products and service offerings, reinforcing digital presence, and expansion into new markets, thus enabling the bank to cement its position as one of the most prominent Islamic banks in Kuwait and the region.”

During the lecture, Professor Robert Siegel reviewed Boubyan Bank’s journey from its beginnings, explaining that the bank was founded in 2004 and started engaging in operational business in the following year, highlighting the then fierce competitive landscape in the Kuwaiti banking business ahead of the financial crisis of 2008 that came to affect various economic sectors, especially the banking and financial sectors.

He explained that 2009 was the most significant turning point in the bank's journey, with Adel Al-Majed assuming the CEO position, backed by his long experience with NBK, and how he started a new phase of institutional restructuring where he focused on restructuring the management team, setting new business foundations based on discipline and teamwork, and tapping into hidden opportunities in the Islamic banking sector, which ultimately led to a complete success story.

He pointed out that such an achievement was not the result of a conventional expansion; rather, it came as the fruit of a clear vision and meticulous restructuring that included reinforcing operational efficiency and building an executive team that enjoyed vast banking experiences, capable of leading change and transforming challenges into opportunities for sustainable growth.

* People Drive Success

Answering the queries of program participants during the discussion, Al-Tuwaijri emphasized: “One of the secrets of Boubyan Bank’s success is the formation of a professional team, capable of implementing our vision and translating it into tangible results in the real world. The first phase of our transformation witnessed the acquisition of banking executives and leaderships that had quality experiences, which contributed to building a more efficient, clearer, and more harmonious business environment.”

He went on to add: “The Group’s accomplishments and excellence rely in the first place on our institutional approach and team spirit, in addition to our clear strategy and focusing on the basics of banking, foremost among them are customer service, investment in human resources, and improving our product and service offerings to keep up with the developments and needs of the market.”

“Within a few years, the bank succeeded in achieving a double-digit growth across a number of financial and operational indicators. By 2020, Boubyan had the second-highest number of Kuwaiti customers and had gone from the smallest Bank in Kuwait to a solid number three, demonstrating the huge transformation the bank lived over a relatively short span.”, Al-Tuwaijri elaborated.

** The Islamic Identity and Customer Experience

He pointed out that Boubyan introduced a unique model in the Kuwaiti market by combining the Islamic banking identity with cutting-edge banking experience that meets customers’ expectations and keeps up with the best modern practices.

He went on to add: “Ever since the start of the transformation phase in 2009, the bank's management has been keen on improving the quality of services and products constantly, in a manner that enriches the banking experience and makes it more attuned to customers’ needs and daily lifestyles. This has ultimately led Boubyan to be in the lead of quality customer service indices, evidenced by the bank’s recent recognition with the award for the “Best Islamic Bank in Customer Service” for the 16th year in a row by Service Hero, the consumer-driven customer satisfaction index, making the bank a leading franchise in the banking industry, by following a tailored path that reinforces customer satisfaction levels, leading to receiving a 96% customer-satisfaction score among all Islamic and conventional local banks.

** Transformation towards Retail and the Youths

Al-Tuwaijri stated: “One of the key strategic transformations witnessed by the bank is the systematic expansion in retail banking services, following a greater focus on corporate finance in the beginning. This transformation has restructured the bank’s portfolio, rendering it more balanced and sustainable.”

Speaking of digital investments and infrastructure, he explained that the bank continued its investment in this area by launching the Digital Innovation Center, in addition to building strategic partnerships with key partners in telecommunications and FinTech.

** Digital and Preemptive Sustainability in AI Applications

During the lecture, Al-Tuwaijri emphasized: “Digital transformation is not an option anymore for banks. It has rather become a necessity in view of the accelerating technological changes. Boubyan has been among the first institutions to realize this transformation and treat it as a key part of its operational model, far from being a side developmental track.”

He went on to elaborate: “Nearly 99% of the bank’s transactions are processed through digital channels, led by our mobile banking App. This reflects the mature level of the bank’s digital experience and the trust customers place in our bank; a fruit we are reaping from the strategy we started early on by focusing on building a smooth, fast, and seamless banking experience.”

Moreover, Al-Tuwaijri reviewed the bank’s efforts towards employing AI and integrating it into the bank’s operational and service ecosystem, highlighting the bank’s development of the first local AI model capable of understanding and analyzing the Kuwaiti dialect with high accuracy, while using the same to transcribe Call Center’s phone conversations into analyzable transcripts, helping the bank understand customers’ needs more accurately and analyze their emotions, thus assisting teams by providing more accurate assessments that contribute to improving services and taking more efficient decisions.

** Expansion and Regional Strategy

He pointed out: “Our success story was not restricted to the local market; rather, it extended to reinforce the Group’s regional and international presence through a well-planned expansion strategy that aimed at diversifying our income sources and expanding our customer base, while reinforcing our presence in international banking and wealth-management services.”

He elaborated: “The Group now includes Boubyan Bank, The Bank of London and the Middle East, and Nomo Bank ‘the Group’s digital arm’, in addition to a number of subsidiaries, namely, Boubyan Takaful Insurance Company and Boubyan Capital Investment Company. This demonstrates a gradual expansion path that aligns with the bank’s vision toward building a complete banking group with local and international presence.”

** Real-World Model for Institutional Transformation

Al-Tuwaijri went on to emphasize: “Boubyan’s experience represents a real-world model for institutional transformation, based on a clear vision, disciplined implementation, and investment in competent cadres, all while staying customer-focused and maintaining adaptability. Climbing to the third place from the 9th among Kuwaiti banks over 10 years is a clear testament to the success of our strategy and the integrated development efforts on the level of the organizational structure, products and services, digital presence, and expansion in markets, enabling the bank to cement its position as one of the most prominent Islamic banks in Kuwait and the region.”

The lecture saw strong engagement from students, whose questions focused on Boubyan Bank’s digital transformation experience, the drivers of its success in a highly-competitive banking sector, in addition to its vision about the Kuwaiti and GCC banking sector in view of the academic study that tackled its experience.

As he concluded his participation, Al-Tuwaijri expressed his sincere appreciation to the management of the university and the course’s instructors and organizers, Lecturers Robert Siegel and Dr. Ibrahim Al Mojel, emphasizing the importance of sharing the experiences of successful institutions with international academia, and giving post-graduate students the chance to know real-world examples of leadership, transformation, and innovation from the region.

“We are extremely grateful for the generous time Mr. Abdullah Al-Tuwaijri’s spent with our students and the lively discussion of the opportunities and challenges faced by Boubyan Bank. The session helped illustrate the successful transformation of an existing organization in a rapidly changing world,” shared Robert Siegel.

Highlights

Financial Growth

During the period (2010-2025), the retail financing portfolio turned to represent 36% of the financing portfolio, standing at $9.4 billion in 2025 (a 23-fold increase over 15 years, a compounded annual growth rate of 25%), while corporate loans increased during the period from 2008 to 2025 to $16.5 billion. The composition of the financing portfolio shifted, too. Financial institutions (excluding banks) represented less than 6% of the total portfolio in 2025, down from 25% in 2010.

The bank’s assets reached $33.4 billion in 2025, up from $4.3 billion in 2010, a compounded annual growth rate of 16%.