UAE’s FAB partners with IBM to accelerate digital transformation

First Abu Dhabi Bank (FAB) is collaborating with IBM Consulting to support the bank’s ongoing digital transformation journey. IBM will work to enhance FAB’s digital platforms in a hybrid cloud environment to help deliver a seamless digital experience to the bank’s customers.

IBM Consulting will provide FAB with deep industry expertise in the areas of banking, hybrid cloud and application modernisation to enhance the bank’s ability to faster develop new products and digital services.

FAB has been undergoing a transformation to digitise its retail banking products and services for a few years, with the bank now rolling out a wide range of new digital banking offerings to meet customers’ digital needs.

Srinivasan Sampath, acting group chief technology officer – First Abu Dhabi Bank said: “As we accelerate into the future of banking, we need to leverage the latest innovations to underpin our ongoing digital transformation efforts to meet our customers’ increasing digital needs. IBM has been essential in our services’ delivery for the past years, and this agreement maintains our relationship to allow us to continue innovating and transforming the way we interact with our customers.”

Christian Noll, the managing partner for IBM Consulting in the Middle East and Africa commented: “IBM is bringing its leading edge capabilities, deep industry experience and leadership in financial services, and understanding of the specific regulatory compliance, security and resiliency needs for the banking industry to help FAB transform and bring innovative experiences to its customers.”

The digitalisation of the UAE’s financial services sector has accelerated during the pandemic, as consumers increasingly relied on the convenience of mobile apps to access their banking services. Banks have been modernising their applications and creating cloud-native development environments to suit evolving customer behaviours and expectations. According to the IBM Institute for Business Value, 71 per cent of banks in the UAE have realised substantial or significant value from modernising business processes and applications.

In recent developments, FAB partnered with Mastercard to launch a new virtual debit card in February.  The proposition allows companies to pay vendors flexibly, while clients can also request for multiple virtual cards linked to their physical or virtual account, which can be assigned to specific units or individuals within an organisation for authorised business expenses.

Read: First Abu Dhabi Bank, Mastercard introduce virtual corporate debit card