Bank of Palestine announced its participation in the activities of the Arab Day for Financial Inclusion, which is held annually on 25 April, and organized by the Palestine Monetary Authority, in partnership with the Association of Arab Banks in Palestine. The bank began to organize a media campaign in its various branches, on social media outlets and its website, and prepared several activities that contribute to the success of these events, as well as raise the awareness of Palestinian society about the importance of financial inclusion in the developmental process.
Bank of Palestine's participation in these events are a continuation of its leadership efforts in developing and expanding banking services to respond to the needs of its customers on the national and regional levels, as part of a comprehensive system and a planned strategy that match contemporary changes in order to achieve the highest degrees of financial inclusion and sustainability. The bank began to implement its plan by establishing the first department, from among all banks that operate in Palestine, which specializes in financial inclusion. This department works hard to achieve financial inclusion, launch financial and banking services, and various programs that specialize in the empowerment of Palestinian women and support development through the creation of products and programs that respond to the needs of all sectors in society.
In addition, the bank has the largest banking network in the country, consisting of 72 branches and offices spread across the Palestinian governorates. It also provides over 162 ATMs that serve more than 800 thousand customers across the economic and social sectors.
Bank of Palestine was among the first banks that initiated the launch of special programs that empower Palestinian women among them the comprehensive Felestineya program that supports women and responds to their needs from banking services to nonfinancial consultations. Felestineya was one of the programs that distinguished the bank because it enabled women to manage various projects through the Mini MBA program, and give them incentive through the best business woman plan award. Also through the program, various financing programs were launched to respond to the financial and banking needs of women through the development of a selection of credit facilitations that assist them in starting their own projects through the Felestineya Collateral Free Loan and the Felestineya Business Gold Loan. From another angle, in 2014, the bank held over 400 workshops that targeted approximately 7,350 participants and assisted them in establishing developmental projects that created employment opportunities for many. It is important to note that in order to promote the role of women in society, Bank of Palestine was the first bank to allow mothers to open accounts for their children.
The bank also created and developed new technological services that assist in achieving financial inclusion, and assisted in supporting, developing and promoting small projects, so that these activities become a significant criterion in its work, alongside the quality and diversity of financial services it provides. The bank also implemented a program to open a bank account for every Palestinian citizen to enable as many people as possible to benefit from banking services and offer customers a variety of credit cards that suit their needs. All these services are offered at all the bank branches and offices that are spread across the Palestinian governorates, and through the large number of ATMs found in all areas to serve all sectors.
Bank of Palestine also developed electronic payment systems in Palestine. It established PalPay Company that provides software solutions in order to create new electronic payment methods, especially to individuals who do not have bank accounts. With the help of PalPay, more than 6,200 Points of Sale were placed in various restaurants, hotels, pharmacies and department stores, in all areas, including remote ones. The aim behind this initiative was to reach an advanced level of financial inclusion and allow customers and citizens alike to pay their bills and shop at these Points of Sale, as well as enable students to pay their university fees and loan borrowers from lending institutions to pay their due installments.
In 2016, the Banker magazine, known in the field of money, business and the banking industry, granted Bank of Palestine the award for Best Bank in the World in the field of financial inclusion, and it was unprecedented in the Arab World for an Arab financial institution to be granted such an honor. The bank earned this award as a result of its hard work over the years with an aim to achieve sustainable and comprehensive development within the Palestinian society and economy. The bank took huge steps to achieve an advanced level of financial inclusion, and its hard work was conducted in many areas including the development of electronic services, internet banking and the Banki Mobile Application, which allowed customers to conduct their banking transactions at all times without the need to visit the bank. These development allowed for the upgrading of electronic banking services and promoting the culture of using plastic cards.