Bank of Palestine was feted as ‘Bank of the Year for 2013” in the prestigious annual awards competition conducted by The Banker Magazine, a London-based international banking and finance magazine founded in 1926. The Banker classifies banks around the world in order to reward them and promote their high quality financial products worldwide. This was the first time Palestine was included in the annual award classification.
The award was handed to representatives from Bank of Palestine in a special ceremony held in London by the by The Banker. The ceremony was attended by eminent figures from the global banking sector, banks’ directors and international finance organizations from Europe, the Middle East and the Arab Gulf.
Bank of Palestine was chosen for the award after a series of testing processes conducted by The Banker of the administrative systems, and based on the bank’s local achievements during 12 months. An evaluation committee consisting of experts and researchers in the area of finance and banking products from different countries examined bank of Palestine file and nominated it for the award. The clinching factor was the view that Bank of Palestine is now well advanced on a long-term growth trajectory.
The achievements of Bank of Palestine during last year included expansion and opening of new branches in rural areas and marginalized villages, promoting SMEs, and developing programs and providing services and products that meet the needs of the community such as the green loan program, the fishermen lending program, developing banking services for women, and encouraging the youth on entrepreneurship.
In addition, Bank of Palestine has taken long strides in implementing the sustainability strategy, focusing on risk management and corporate good governance. The bank has also had a strong presence in economic and social development.