Bank ABC’s ‘ABC Labs’ named one of the World’s Best financial Innovation Labs for the third time

Bank ABC has won the global title ‘Best Financial Innovation Lab’ for its innovation and digitisation centre, ABC Labs, at Global Finance Innovators 2024 awards. This third time win underscores the Bank’s solid approach and dedication to spearheading innovation and digital transformation to redefine banking in MENA and beyond. The award was announced at a ceremony in London which brought together industry leaders, innovators, and trailblazers from across the world.
Since its inception in 2019, ABC Labs has been reimagining business models, designing innovative products and solutions, and co-creating with stakeholders to strengthen the Bank’s value proposition and take the industry to new frontiers. The Lab established the Bank’s digital architecture and agile operating model for strategic initiatives such as the launch of the digital mobile-only ila Bank and the digital transformation of the Wholesale Bank to enrich the corporate and consumer banking experience in the region. 
Commenting on this remarkable win, Bank ABC’s Group CEO, Sael Al Waary remarked: “At Bank ABC, innovation is one of the core drivers of our strategy as we accelerate towards becoming MENA’s international bank of the future. With a dedicated Group Innovation team leveraging state-of-the-art technologies, ABC Labs is spearheading a comprehensive innovation programme to drive value creation and ensure the Bank remains relevant in a fast-evolving world. We are proud to win this global title for the third time, which encourages us to keep pushing the envelope of innovation to deliver next-generation banking solutions and cultivate a more sustainable future for all our stakeholders.”
“Innovation continues to help banks and other financial institutions gain a strategic competitive advantage over their peers,” said Joseph Giarraputo, founder and editorial director of Global Finance. “By harnessing new technologies and imaginative thinking, this year’s winners have developed groundbreaking solutions to both ease customer pain points and deliver outstanding user experiences.”
On this occasion, Bank ABC’s Group Chief Innovation Officer, Dr. Yousif Almas added: “ABC Labs is committed to solving problems or seizing opportunities in new and well-designed ways to realize value. This enhances customer experience, drives business growth, improves operational efficiency, reduces risks and cements our position as the bank of the future. We are honored to see this agenda lauded by Global Finance once again and take this opportunity to thank our leadership for their vision and commitment to digital innovation in addition to our colleagues, partners, and customers across the Group for actively engaging in our innovation journey.”
Through a bespoke innovation programme, ABC Labs is steering three specialized portfolios aimed at enabling, exploring, and executing leading-edge business and technology innovations. Notable recent achievements include the launch of instant cross-border high-value payment solution leveraging tokenized deposits, a state-of-the-art Corporate Portal which serves as a digital gateway to the Bank’s product suite, a next-generation Frontline Platform transforming client engagement, and an Artificial Intelligence (AI) implementation programme to drive new business value from Analytical and Generative AI.