Since taking over 14 branches of British
Bank of the Middle East in late 1984,
OIB has rapidly expanded its branch
network and other electronic delivery
systems to become one of the largest
banks in Oman
Today, we operate through 86 branches,
82 branches locally and four overseas
(two in India and two in Pakistan).
The Bank has a strong automated teller
machine (ATM) network of 104 machines,
providing 24 hour banking services.
Through our steady growth we have created
achieved many milestones in the banking
sector. We have a long list of firsts
for innovation. To mention a few, the
bank was the first to offer mobile banking
service in the Gulf, the first Omani
bank to issue a Visa card, the first
to introduce automated teller machines
(ATMs) throughout the country, the first
bank to introduce the Savings Prize
Draw Scheme, and first to introduce
an account for children with our Masroor
Account. So our evolving products and
services revolutionised the banking
sector in Oman and firmly entrenched
OIB as the people's "Friend and
Partner." Can
you name the services the bank provides
and how they help different categories
of people in Oman?
OIB engages in corporate, retail and
products and non-resident services.
In the corporate field, we have relations
with almost all large Omani corporations
and provide them with a wide range
of services, such as term loans, financing
working capital requirements, trade
finance and treasury services. Corporations
have real-time access to the bank
balances. With the largest capital
base among the local banks, we are
well positioned to provide the maximum
lending to a customer within the limit
laid down by the Central Bank of Oman.
In retail services and products, Mandoos
and Masroor (for children) are very
popular. We also offer free Phone
Banking system, the ABC Plus Visa
Electron card that lets you access
funds anywhere in the world through
Visa's 'Point of Sale' network of
over 24 million retail outlets and
Visa's global network of 750,000 ATMs
Worldwide, a Cash Back facility that
lets account holders to withdraw cash
through the ABC Plus Visa Electron
card in some participating shops and
the OIB Visa / MasterCard cards. OIB
issues many credit card products such
as the Visa Platinum, Visa Gold, Visa
Classic, Visa Business and Visa Cyber
card for online shopping, and the
MasterCard Gold and MasterCard Standard
cards.
To cater to all segments of society,
OIB has a number of special schemes
like Al Mubashar, a one-of-its-kind
cyber credit card, Basma, a personal
loan scheme, Al Mubde, which finances
small entrepreneurs who have special
needs, Al Mostaneer, an education
loan, and Al Imtiyaaz, an exclusive
privilege banking and wealth management
service that recognises the unique
financial needs of customers. For
the expatriate community, the bank
has a dedicated Non-Resident Center.
How have
these exclusive services helped OIB's
growth?
We have maintained a judicial mix
between loans and short-term liquid
assets represented by cash and balance
with central banks, bank placements
and treasury bills. The bank's capital
position continues to be very strong
which demonstrates sound financial
position.
Our efforts on consolidating the bank's
position in the local market, increasing
its market share, and enhancing asset
quality while reducing operating expenses
during the course of the past year
have paid off strongly. The operating
profit for the six months ended 30th
June 2006 was RO14.963 million, an
increase of 29.5 per cent over the
corresponding period the previous
year.
Has the bank managed to achieve as
much progress on its social responsibility
side as it has done on the financial
side?
First and foremost, we are one of
the banks with highest rate of Omanisation
(92.9 per cent). In addition, OIB
has actively involved itself in social
and cultural advancement of the country
through various projects, sponsorships,
charity programmes and cultural events.
These include support for the traditional
fishing industry, promotion of pottery,
sponsoring major national events like
Muscat International Book Fair, Muscat
Festival, Khareef Festival, The H.M.
Football Cup, and many others.
What are
the rewards for the bank's commitment
to the country's social progress?
The best reward has been the increase
in the market share. But more specifically,
we have received accolades and credits
for displaying high degree of professionalism.
We have been awarded 'Best Employer
for Omanisation in Private Sector'
by Ministry of Manpower. GC Anderson
Consulting, an independent consulting
and research company has ranked OIB
first among all banks and second among
all banks surveyed in a syndicated
research on customer service levels
in Omani Banks. In recent times, OIB
was conferred the “Straight
Through Processing Award” by
ABN AMRO Bank. The magazine, Oman
Economic Review, ranked OIB among
its Top10 largest publicly listed
corporations in Oman.
What makes
OIB stand out among all other banks
in the region?
Our excellent customer service is
what makes us different, as we provide
individual and caring attention to
our valued customers.
As a pre-eminent national financial
institution, OIB believes in offering
the most innovative and reliable services
available, a fact already mentioned
earlier.
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