Emirates NBD, a leading financial institution in the region, took home the biggest titles at The Asian Banker's International Excellence in Retail Financial Services 2018 Awards, winning ‘The Best Retail Bank in the Middle East’, and ‘The Best Retail Bank in the UAE’. Liv., Emirates NBD’s digital lifestyle bank for millennials was recognised as ‘The Best Digital Bank in the Middle East’ only one year into its operations. Emirates NBD was also honoured with ‘The Best Internet Banking Application’ award internationally.

At the awards ceremony held in Malaysia late last month, Emirates NBD was recognised for its milestone achievements in retail banking over the past year. The bank’s retail banking division registered robust double-digit growths in revenues and profits in 2017, gaining market share across most retail products and segments.

The bank continued to lead the market on innovation and digitalisation, implementing several pioneering solutions last year to offer its customers a superior banking experience. EVA™ (Emirates NBD Virtual Assistant), the region’s first voice-based virtual chatbot powered by artificial intelligence was introduced, enabling customers to receive assistance using conversational English or Arabic. The bank launched SkyShopper, an e-commerce portal allowing customers to shop online across categories with the convenience of a single check out. Paperless personal loan and card applications through tablets and in branches were rolled out enabling customers to apply for a new product without providing or signing a single piece of paper. Digital payment capabilities for customers were enhanced with the introduction of Samsung Pay and Apple Pay. The bank also opened its first fully digital branch allowing customers to carry out a variety of transactions and apply for products on their own, assisted by trained service ambassadors.

Emirates NBD further consolidated its digital banking leadership with the launch of a new online platform last year that provides a rich user interface, creation of personalised profiles, intuitive widgets to help track finances and a digital store for new product applications. Additionally, the portal offers video banking facilities, termed FaceBanking, that allows eligible customers to talk to an advisor at any time of day to carry out transactions or sign up for a new loan instantly, providing the convenience of digital banking with the comfort of human touch.

Commenting on the win, Suvo Sarkar, Senior Executive Vice President & Head - Retail Banking & Wealth Management, Emirates NBD said: “We are truly honoured to be recognised, for the third time in recent years, as the best retail bank in the region at the prestigious Asian Banker awards. This is a recognition of our commitment to make banking simple, hassle-free and easily accessible for our customers. Our digital platforms continue to lead the market helping customers track their finances, pay bills, transfer money or apply for new products easily and round the clock.”

Liv., Emirates NBD’s mobile-only bank, won recognition as the Best Digital Bank in the Middle East only a year after it began operations, for its unique proposition built for the UAE’s growing millennial customer segment. Liv. provides an intuitive banking experience for customers including instant account opening from smartphones, fund transfers through social media channels, carrying out bill splits with friends, tagging expenses to better manage financials, international 60-second remittances as well as curated daily feeds of selected deals and happenings in the UAE personalised to their preferences.

“We are overwhelmed by the customer response to Liv. since its launch a year back, and this recognition. We will continue to enhance Liv.’s portfolio of products and services, implementing innovative solutions that will cater to the evolving needs of a younger, digital-first population to provide a fun, social and intelligent banking experience,” said Jayash Patel, Head of Liv.

Emirates NBD is regarded as a regional front-runner in digital banking innovation having introduced several first-to-market products and services via the Emirates NBD Future Lab™. The bank’s futuristic banking space at Emirates Towers, Dubai, showcases emerging breakthroughs in banking and payment technology including Pepper, an AI powered humanoid robot. The bank recently signed a Premier Partnership agreement with Expo 2020 Dubai to become its official banking partner, and will offer a range of innovative financial products and services to visitors, participants and organisers of the global event.