e-Banking in UAE
E-banking refers to the deployment of banking services electronically through a range of technological devices, but mainly over the
Internet. E-banking was first introduced in the UAE in 1996, but has been slow in the uptake, both by banks and clients. Of the 46 banks operating in the UAE, 13 (28.26 percent) offer clients e-banking services. Six of these banks are foreign and seven are national. Five of these national banks are headquartered in Dubai. These are Emirates Bank International, Middle East Bank, Dubai Islamic Bank, Mashreq Bank, and National Bank of Dubai. The five banks translate into some 62.5 percent of Dubai- headquartered banks offering e-banking, an impressive figure, when compared to overall penetration of e-banking services in the UAE, as well as internationally. The other two national banks - National Bank of Abu Dhabi and Union National Bank - are headquartered in Abu Dhabi.
E-banking services on offer are largely similar across the platforms of national and foreign banks - though there are no e-banking standards governing the provision of services, nor the technology in use, in the country. The main services include transfer of funds between accounts, the payment of bills and account and balance inquiries.
The majority of UAE banks offering e-banking provide an integrated "click-and-mortar" service. E-banking serves as a supplement to the banks’ existing offline channels, including bank branches, ATMs and telephone banking. In March 2001, however, MeBank was launched as the self-service delivery channel of Emirates Bank International - essentially serving as a virtual bank. For those clients that do not have computer access, the bank set up
Internet cafe style outlets at convenient locations, equipped with computers and
Internet connections to facilitate e-banking services.
UAE National Commercial Banks Offering e-Banking Services- Dubai Islamic Bank
- Emirates Bank International
- Mashreq Bank
- Middle East Bank
- National Bank of Abu Dhabi
- National Bank of Dubai
- Union National Bank
UAE Foreign Commercial Banks Offering e-Banking Services- Arab Bank
- BNP Paribas
- HSBC Bank Middle East
- Citibank
- Habib Bank A.G. Zurish
- Standard Chartered Bank.
Mobile Banking and Tele-Banking Habib Bank Zurich’s HBZwap service also allows clients to carry out a number of transactions using their WAP-enabled mobile phones or PDAs, such as viewing account balance, transferring funds, and ordering cheque books.
Payment Cards The UAE ranks second in the GCC, behind Kuwait, in payment card density, with some 2.1 million payment cards in use by end 2003, up from 1.9 million at end 2002. Dubai residents constitute some 34 percent of payment card users in the UAE - with some 714,000 cards in use in the emirate. Meanwhile, merchant locations in the UAE numbered 20,000 by end 2003, with some 42 percent (8,400 merchant locations) of them installed in Dubai. By end 2003, the number of ATMs in the country had risen to 1,018 ATMs, with some 38 percent of them located in Dubai.
Contact Centers The contact centers in the banking sector in Dubai are much more developed than in any other business sector. Most of the local banks and foreign banks with headquarters in Dubai have setup round-the clock contact centers services to serve their clientele. These banks are offering the services in Arabic and English languages, plus Hindi and Urdu offered by few banks.
Buzz Contact Center The Buzz Contact Centre was established in early 2002, and is fully owned by Emirates Bank International. The Buzz Contact Centre (finance) has a capacity of 150 seats. The majority of these seats are utilized for serving clientele of Emirates Bank, ME Bank and First Gulf Bank.
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