THE Saudi British Bank (SABB) has been named by Euromoney as the “Best Trade Finance Service Provider” in Saudi Arabia for the year 2018. This is the 3rd successive year that SABB has picked up this coveted award, widely acknowledging SABB as the pre-eminent trade finance bank in the Kingdom.

This recognition is based on a survey carried out by Euromoney where Saudi corporates have recogonised SABB as the market leader within the trade finance space. The survey takes into consideration corporates’ view on their banks’ ability in providing Trade Finance products, solutions, quality of services and market share.

In 2018, SABB continued its focus on client experience, digitalization and the development of trade opportunities for clients. During this period SABB successfully rolled out a number of digital trade finance solutions which include mobile Internet trade solutions, electronic guarantees and further expansion of digital trade solutions. SABB joined the enterprise software firm R3’s global Blockchain ecosystem wherein it was the first bank in KSA to join such an initiative in order to be part of community formed to explore Blockchain / Distributive Ledger Technology (DLT) and to benefit from its growing utilization in financial industry. Other initiatives included an expansion of trade corridor initiatives with key trade partners of KSA, continued education of Saudi customers on emerging trends and risks associated with international trade through its “Trade Academy” initiatives; various customer engagements and thought leadership events aligned with Saudi Vision 2030 (with particular focus on non-oil exports) and with participation from key industry experts; extension of its product suite and services; and continued expansion of its Receivable Finance proposition. SABB also provides unrivalled global connectivity through its association with the HSBC Group and a range of sophisticated and customized conventional and Sharia-compliant trade finance solutions to meet growing trade and supply chain needs of its clients.

David Dew, Managing Director at SABB, said “this award clearly demonstrates that our approach to Trade & Receivable Finance continues to be well received within the Kingdom. We are committed to delivering the best-in-class services, and are focused on creating value that help our clients achieve their business objectives. SABB continues to remain at the forefront of innovations and our recent partnership with R3 shall help puts SABB at the cutting edge of financial innovation, giving our clients all the far-reaching advantages of transaction-speed and security. The award serves to highlight that we continue to lead from the front in providing innovative and customized solutions for the increasingly diverse, challenging and complex trade and supply chain needs of our clients and are proud to be recognized by them for the 3rd consecutive year.” — SG