Emirates NBD KSA, Kafalah Program renew partnership

Emirates NBD Saudi Arabia renewed its partnership with the Kingdom’s Kafalah Program (SME Financing Guarantee Program) at a signing ceremony held on July 24 in the bank’s premises in Riyadh.

Kafalah Program is a collaboration between the Ministry of Finance, represented by the Saudi Industrial Development Fund (SIDF) and Saudi banks, which aims to promote financing for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) within the Kingdom.

Emirates NBD KSA Chief Executive Officer Loai Hassan Abduljawad and Head of Business Banking Nawaf Farrash attended the signing ceremony, along with Kafalah Program representatives including General Director Homam Abdul Aziz Hashim, Credit Team Leader Anas Alshaikh, and Study and Contracts Team Leader Anas Albarrak.

Emirates NBD’s partnership with Kafalah Program began in 2015 when the program only provided banks with guarantees up to SR1.6 million ($426,600) for SMEs with revenues up to SR30 million.

Following the renewal of the Kafalah Program partnership, it will include SMEs with revenues up to SR200 million providing banks with guarantees up to SR15 million.

At the ceremony, Kafalah Program’s general director Hashim discussed the program’s contribution to Saudi Arabia’s GDP by empowering SMEs, as a key sector of the Kingdom’s economy. He also stated that with the launch of new products, the program will continue to stimulate the financing of SMEs in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.

Hashim presented Abduljawad with a plaque as a token of appreciation for the bank’s continuous support.