Emirates Islamic marks 20 years of progress as a leading financial institution in the UAE

Emirates Islamic, one of the leading Islamic financial institutions in the UAE, marks a significant milestone this year, with the bank celebrating its 20th anniversary. As the Islamic banking arm of the Emirates NBD Group, over the last 20 years Emirates Islamic has emerged as a leading Islamic bank in the UAE, serving over 650,000 customers across various banking segments.

Emirates Islamic has played an integral role in the UAE’s development, pioneering various innovations in the Islamic banking sector and developing innovative Shariah-compliant products and services based on the highest standards of ethical banking. The bank has made significant strides over the past two decades, across areas such as Emiratisation, diversity and inclusion, and sustainability, among others. 

To commemorate the milestone, the bank has unveiled a special logo, to be used in all bank communications through the anniversary year.

Commenting on the milestone, Hesham Abdulla Al Qassim, Chairman at Emirates Islamic, said: “Emirates Islamic has strongly affirmed its position as one of the leading Shariah-compliant banks in the UAE. As the Islamic bank of choice in the UAE, we continue to play a pivotal role in the advancement of the Islamic banking sector in the UAE and remain deeply committed to supporting the vision of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, to make Dubai the global capital of the Islamic economy.” 

He added, “I am full of optimism for the promising future ahead as we continue to work together to serve our customers, people and communities.”

Farid Al Mulla, CEO of Emirates Islamic, said: "As we mark our 20th anniversary, we reflect on our journey of growth, innovation, and steadfast commitment to serving the UAE community. Over the past two decades, we have remained resolute in our commitment to deliver exceptional banking services, contributing to the prosperity and development of the nation. Our achievements would not have been possible without the wise leadership of Dubai and the UAE, and we extend our heartfelt gratitude to them as well as our customers, partners, and employees for their trust and support. As we celebrate this significant achievement, we look forward to continuing our legacy of success in the years ahead and reaffirm our commitment to empowering individuals, businesses, and communities.” 

Trusted Partner to the UAE Economy and Businesses

As a home-grown Islamic financial institution, Emirates Islamic has continued to finance the economy of the UAE and contribute to the long-term economic growth and development of the region. With a focus of accelerating SME development and diversification, Emirates Islamic supports the UAE Vision to increase its Global Entrepreneurship Indicator ranking and enhance SME contribution to non-oil GDP.

Digital Innovation  

As a digital forerunner within the Islamic banking sector, Emirates Islamic continues its long-term commitment to bringing banking innovation to UAE customers. Following on from being the first Islamic bank in the UAE to offer all three major wallets – Apple Pay, Google Pay and Samsung Pay – Emirates Islamic became the first Islamic bank in the world to introduce WhatsApp Banking for its customers.

Emirates Islamic brings additional convenience to its customers with several innovative features in digital banking including cardless withdrawal at ATMs, smart pass authentication for additional security and remote branch queue. Further, in line with the bank’s ongoing digital transformation journey, it continues to consistently make strategic investments in technological solutions that enhance front-end and back-end banking operations.

Supporting the UAE’s People and Communities

As a leading local bank, Emirates Islamic has always remained deeply committed to developing Emirati talent across the bank. Currently, the bank has one of the highest Emiratisation levels in the UAE banking sector, with 36 per cent of the total number of employees and continues to undertake several initiatives to increase Emirati participation in critical roles within the organisation, supporting the Central Bank of the UAE’s Emiratisation policy. 

Further, as a Shariah-compliant bank, Emirates Islamic endeavours to contribute towards the wellbeing of society by promoting fair and equal creation of wealth and a prosperous economy.

Contributing to UAE’s sustainability vision  

Emirates Islamic remains committed to embedding Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) values in its core culture and operations and this has been perceived in the progress made towards reducing emissions and efforts towards achieving gender parity.

As a stalwart of environmental protection, Emirates Islamic has committed not only to national and regional development ambitions but also international targets, such as the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and reducing the bank’s environmental impact in line with the UAE Net Zero 2050 strategy. 

Emirates Islamic is also a part of the Emirates NBD Group’s Sustainable Finance Framework which allows for the issuance of green and sustainable financing instruments to finance projects that enable the transition to a low-carbon and climate-resilient economy.

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