National Bank of Dubai launches customer relationship management initiative

Dubai, UAE, 24 April 2006 - In an effort to further improve service quality for its customers, National Bank of Dubai today announced the launch of a new Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system across all its forty branches in the UAE and all customer service units within the Retail Banking division including its 24-hour Call Centre.

The state-of-the-art Oracle-based application provides the bank's staff with a consolidated view of all of the customer's products, recent contacts across all channels and offers a single point of resolution for their enquiries. Furthermore, the highly-tailored and industry-specific CRM solution enables NBD to offer its customers additional products and services that are both personalized and timed to meet their needs.

"The launch of our customer relationship system will enable us to enhance our levels of customer service throughout the bank," stated Suvo Sarkar, Head of Retail Banking, National Bank of Dubai. "In an increasingly competitive business environment, we are keen on placing our customer-focused strategies at the forefront of our business. With the launch of the CRM system, we are positioned to deliver relevant products and a more personalized customer experience across all points of contact."

This initiative will see the National Bank of Dubai using the main elements of the Oracle CRM family integrated applications such as the Oracle Interaction Centre and TeleSales applications. Identified as a critical element in providing integrated information from across NBD's information systems, the CRM system will be applied internally through the collective efforts of the entire bank's branches, call centre, card services, and retail credit centre as well as across the credit management and risk business units.

"At the National Bank of Dubai, we make it a priority to respond to our customer's needs and wants, resulting in a deeper understanding of the various customer segments," continued Sarkar. "We are a customer focused financial institution and with the right data management capabilities, we can gain insight into value chains and understand our customers better."

With this initiative, National Bank of Dubai will be among the first banks in the UAE and in the GCC to implement the world-class Oracle CRM solution. The bank has previously installed several components of the Oracle E-Business Suite including General Ledger, Accounts Payable, Human Resources Management and Payroll.

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About National Bank of Dubai
Founded in 1963, the National Bank of Dubai is the oldest, locally incorporated bank in the Southern Gulf. Recognized as the bank with a performance that is second-to-none, NBD has built a reputation of stability and strength much appreciated by shareholders and customers alike.

Offering diversified financial services, NBD is a leader in corporate banking. Its portfolio covers a wide range of services including transport, real estate, construction, manufacturing, tourism and service industries throughout the region. In addition, NBD's 'Private Office' provides private banking services, offering highly tailored solutions to preserve and protect the personal wealth of its customers. Along with supplying customers with a variety of exclusive service based products, secured facilities, Credit Cards, personal loans, auto loans and home loans, the National Bank of Dubai also offers a variety of treasury products and services, advising customers on exchange markets and interest rate outlook. NBD, also recently launched Suhail Priority Banking Services, a premier banking service offering customers personalized relationship management and a host of exclusive products and services. Furthermore, NBD presents their customers with automated banking services, which consist of an internet service (NBD Online), a telebanking facility (NBD Telebank), and an SMS based service (NBD Mobile). With a comprehensive card portfolio that provides an array of benefits, the National Bank of Dubai has, over the years, built a wide ATM network as well as Point of Sale terminals in select locations throughout the UAE.

The National Bank of Dubai currently has an extensive branch network that includes 39 branches throughout the UAE. In addition, NBD also has a branch in London and a representative office in Tehran.

Press release issued on behalf of the National Bank of Dubai by Hill & Knowlton, Dubai.

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Nada Lotfy
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