SNB had signed cooperation agreements with the Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority "Monsha'at," with the goal of supporting the SMEs and entrepreneurship sector, as well as providing a comprehensive system of quality financing and banking services and solutions. This is part of its contribution to economic development to achieve the Saudi Vision 2030 objectives, and it is consistent with its efforts to support and empower the SME sector. These deals were signed during the recently-concluded GEC, which was held at the King Abdulaziz International Conference Center in Riyadh. The agreement was signed by Monsha'at's Deputy Governor of Funding Mohammed AlMalki, SNB's Head of Business Banking Mohammed AlZaid and SNB's Head of CSR Ms. Basma AlJohari. Through the Franchise Financing Agreement, which aims to qualify and facilitate SMEs' access to markets and investment opportunities with financing amounts of up to SR1 billion, the cooperation agreements will support SMEs and entrepreneurs in the Kingdom by facilitating their access to innovative financing solutions and enabling them to benefit from banking services. The second agreement, the Innovation Funding Program Agreement of the Bank's corporate responsibility arm, seeks to provide non-refundable financial assistance to enable entrepreneurs and early-stage emerging enterprises to kick-start their business activities, stimulate innovation for quality projects, and fill financing gaps in emerging projects during their innovation stage in accordance with the program's policies and procedures. According to AlZaid, these agreements will contribute to supporting the SMEs and entrepreneurship sector, and they also embody the Bank's partnership in developing the national economy to achieve sustainable growth. He stated that SNB, as a supportive partner of this sector in the Kingdom, has the largest share in financing SMEs in the franchise field, with total financing that exceeded SR253 million by the end of 2021. AlJowhari confirmed that SNB is a permanent partner in empowering the SMEs and entrepreneurship sector in order to boost the performance of these establishments' owners and enable them to expand their activities. She explained that these agreements stem from the importance the Bank attaches to this sector, as it is one of the most important drivers of economic growth in line with the Saudi Vision 2030. — SG
