Alinma Bank and the General Authority for Small and Medium Enterprises (Monshaat), have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that will see the two organizations cooperate on issues of financial awareness in the SME sector in Saudi Arabia. More specifically, through the agreement, Alinma and Monshaat will help business owners better understand financial solutions available to them, and will further guide them to financing sources appropriate for their various phases of growth and expansion. For Alinma, the agreement comes as an extension of its ongoing commitment to the SME sector, with the understanding that this sector will remain vital to the economic growth of the kingdom as a whole. The MoU also provides Alinma with another way for it to express its support for Saudi youth and job creation on their behalf, as well as the bank's support for Vision 2030 and its many objectives. Speaking about the MoU, Alinma Bank's General Manager for Business Banking and SMEs Raad Al-Jarba reaffirmed the bank's commitment to the advancement of the SME sector in the kingdom and to providing necessary support for companies in the sector. He further noted that many of Alinma's banking and financing services were designed to fit the needs of SMEs and that in providing these to its partners (customers), the bank played an active role in the growth and health of the national economy. Alinma and Monshaat have several other cooperative endeavors focused on supporting the SME sector, such as a project financing agreement through Monshaat's financing portal platform, as well as the bank's recently launched guaranteed financing program, through which SMEs can qualify for as much as SAR 15,700,000 in financing. Alinma Bank also actively supports the Kafalah program with a similar focus on both educational, operational, and financial support of SMEs. — SG
