Publicis Sapient and Microsoft partner with Anglo-Gulf Trade Bank

Digital business transformation company Publicis Sapient and Microsoft have announced a partnership supporting the launch of the world’s first end-to-end digital trade bank, Anglo-Gulf Trade Bank. The two businesses aided in the creation of the entirely new bank by providing it with implementation strategy, technology and client experience from the outset.

Nigel Vaz, Global CEO of Publicis Sapient commented: “Trade finance, unlike consumer banking, has not been reimagined in the context of a digital world. The slow pace of progress has meant that only a small proportion of businesses could access trade finance due to the associated administrative and financial barriers. We sought to address this.”

Anglo-Gulf Trade Bank (AGTB) will address the challenge of creating a digital banking solution that helps bridge the trade finance gap. Publicis Sapient will function as a digital partner, utilising Microsoft’s cloud-based security and data solutions, making the entity the very first trade bank that is fully digital from the outset and built on data to provide a single view of the client and all banking operations.

“Unprecedented changes in the financial services industry are mandating the need for transformation. This calls the sector to embrace technologies that combine intelligence and security, while maintaining trust at the centre,” said Sayed Hashish, General Manager at Microsoft UAE.

Trade finance is currently only an option for the few – mostly large multinationals – leaving a trade-financing gap for SMEs who cannot access it, which was estimated at US$1.5 trillion by Asian Development Bank’s 2017 Trade Finance Gaps, Growth, and Jobs Survey. This means a loss of economic growth potential internationally. The companies say that by overcoming barriers to conventional trade finance and banking, global GDP could increase by nearly 5% and trade by 15%.

Daniel Gould, Deputy Chief Executive Officer, Anglo-Gulf Trade Bank, added: “In building a fully cloud-based and data-driven enterprise we aim to improve cross-border trade finance and stimulate collaboration within a growing trade ecosystem.”

Headquartered in the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) financial centre, based in the capital city of the United Arab Emirates, with additional offices to follow, Anglo-Gulf Trade Bank will facilitate trade between the Middle East, Asia and the UK.