Al Rajhi Banking & Investment Corporation to host Retail Banking Summit at WIBC

The WIBC international audience will have the option to participate in either of the two summits as both will run concurrently on 11 Dec 2005 in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

The Retail Banking Summit will be hosted by Al Rajhi Banking & Investment Corporation, Saudi Arabia's largest quoted bank, and will focus on exploring the latest trends and new product opportunities in the consumer banking environment.

Saeed Mohammed Al Ghamdi, General Manager - Retail Banking, Al Rajhi Banking & Investment Corporation will commence the summit with his presentation titled Retail transformation through a CRM program.

"Al Rajhi Bank owns the largest branch and ATM networks distributed throughout the KSA. It is the leading bank in Consumer Loans, Current Account, Charge Cards and Money Transfers while it has a strong presence in Credit Cards, Brokerage and Mutual Funds. Technologically advanced, the Bank has developed its CRM system and offers the full spectrum of its products/services through alternative channels with a 89% migration ratio,"

he commented.

Nasr-Eddine Benaissa, Partner, McKinsey & Company will also speak at the Retail Banking Summit and discuss why Islamic banks will need to make their Retail offering competitive to both Islamic and conventional banks and how service quality will be a key factor in guaranteeing the capture of new Retail business. Paul McNamara, Managing Editor & Associate Publisher, CPI Financial, will moderate the session.

The Corporate & Investment Banking Summit will be hosted by CIMB Islamic and will focus on exploring the latest trends in corporate & investment banking markets, assessing the latest developments in Islamic Capital Markets and emerging opportunities in sovereign & corporate Sukuk.

"CIMB Islamic is delighted to be associated with the WIBC as the Corporate Banking Partner. As a leading player in the Islamic bond market, events such as the WIBC provide a sound platform for us to share knowledge and gain new insights into the market," said Badlisyah Abdul Ghani, Head of Islamic Banking Division, CIMB Banking Group.

CIMB Islamic is an independent business division of Commerce International Merchant Bankers Berhad (CIMB), the largest investment bank in South East Asia. CIMB Islamic has been the top lead manager for Islamic bonds in Malaysia since 1990 with an average market share of 20% and it commands a 27% market share of the Sukuk market globally.

Shamsun A. Hussain, Head Investment & Corporate Banking - Islamic Banking Division, CIMB Banking Group, will commence the discussion. Joining him will be Ismail Dadabhoy, Head of Institutional Banking, Noriba; Arul Kandasamy, Head of Islamic Banking, Calyon Corporate & Investment Bank; and Hossam Y. Radwan, Executive Director: Investment Management, Goldman Sachs International. Nima Abu-Wardeh, Presenter, BBC Middle East Business Report, will moderate the session.