JEDDAH – The first day of the 4th Annual World Islamic Retail Banking Conference that opened Saturday in Dubai focused on customer centricity and cross selling which provided insights on how banks can maintain competitive advantage through developing targeted offerings based on customer value, how technology can help banks to sell more products and increased engagement through social media. Customer centricity was presented by Yusuf Jehangir, Group Head Marketing at Al Rajhi Bank, while cross selling at every opportunity was presented by Ghiath Halabi, Engagement Director at VeriPark. Supported by Bahrain Association of Banks, International Compliance Association and the Islamic Finance Council UK, the conference, with supported exhibition, opened with a speech from the chairman, Syed Haider Mehdi. Mehdi is the president and CEO of Management Excellence, a UAE-based transformational sales and service change specialist consultancy, working in the retail banking sector. Welma Williams, Deputy Production Director at Fleming Gulf, organizers of the World Islamic Retail Banking Conference, said: “We are overwhelmed with the increased number in participation this year, both from delegates and exhibiting companies. Islamic retail banking is one of the fastest growing banking sectors in the MENA region rivaling traditional banks. It is a progressive and robust industry in itself, for this reason, competition is mounting, with more banks eager to get a share of the growing market. I believe this is reflected through the annual growth of the World Islamic Retail Banking Conference. Banks recognize that it is important to innovate with their products and services. Finding ways to spur innovation in product design and business models is the key to getting ahead.” Muhannad Shehadeh, Chief Executive Officer at Military Credit Fund - Jordan, inspirde the audience with a case study on Jordan's military credit. Retail banks have always been entertaining a variety of customers across various segments. There are not too many retail banks in the region that are dedicated to a particular segment, through an Islamic model. The Military Credit Fund is an initiative launched by Royal Hashemite Court. – SG
