In this Q&A Interview with Boubyan Bank’s experienced vice chair and group CEO, Adel Al-Majed, he discusses his leadership style, why it’s important to hire great people with strength and honesty, and his ambitions in the Middle East & North Africa (MENA) region & indeed the world for the new Nomo digital only shariah compliant bank app that Boubyan has unveiled.
Al-Majed is a 40-year veteran of the banking industry, previous Chairman of the Kuwait Banking Association (KBA), who was awarded for “Outstanding Contribution to Islamic Finance” by Global Finance in 2021. Since joining Boubyan Bank in 2009, as Chief Executive Officer, his focus on digital services, internal efficiency and good people has seen assets rise from US$4 billion to US$21bn and profitability increase. He has high hopes for the future with Boubyan’s new Nomo digital only shariah compliant bank setting the institution up for future growth and for a leading role in the digitalization of the sector.
(NBK) in 1980, rising from executive to assistant general and deputy general manager, before becoming general manager (GM) of consumer banking in 1998. He was deputy CEO before joining Boubyan and is a graduate of the University of Alexandria with a bachelor’s degree in accounting.
He is a fan of English football and supporter of Manchester United and wants to set the strategy like a football manager and trust his players to implement it. The MENA Banking Excellence Awards 2022 Islamic Banker of the Year (see separate story on page ??) has learnt many managerial and leadership skills during his time in the industry, which he’d like to pass on…
Question: Q1. What are your key leadership tips for any newcomers entering the banking industry or senior leaders fast rising in the sector?
Answer: A1. I believe that any successful organization cannot achieve its goals without hiring the right people in the first place. That goes for identifying new employees with talent, to senior leaders who have remained on track, progressed, and remembered that strength and honesty are the crucial foundations that underpin success. Whatever other additional skills and knowledge people bring to the industry that is crucial. A continual thirst for knowledge and improvement is important too.
I like to reference a story about Moses in the Qur’an where Moses rests at a well and offers to help two women shepherdesses get their flock to a well to drink, after seeing a group of men segregate the water for themselves. Impressed by his attitude one of the women recommends that her father hires Moses, while stating that the best people are those who are “strong and honest”.
In the modern world strength is now about personality, not physicality. The honest person will come up to me and say if something isn’t working and why a strategy could be better. That is what I want. I don’t want people to just say ‘yes’ to me and play the game. Innovation and advances do not result from that attitude.
Boubyan’s role as facilitator, convenor and consolidator of banking services that can partner with fintechs from around the globe to deliver innovative offerings like the Nomo digital only shariah compliant bank app, which works like Monzo or other ‘neo banks’ on a smartphone only, requires a rare mindset for a leader: the ability to relinquish control and delegate to outside expertise. With age, you learn you can’t physically or mentally control everything. You must trust good people and evolve your thinking. As the world grows more sophisticated, it’s unrealistic for me to know and get involved in everything. It is undoable, so you must delegate. The key is to form an overarching methodology of how you want your organization to operate, then delegate and let those strong and honest men and women thrive and flourish within those parameters.
At Boubyan, we long ago recognized that to be successful we need to think and behave like a technology company – and partner with them where we can deliver ‘plug and go’ services like budgeting tools, data-led personalization, and numerous useful apps on our Nomo platform – rather than behave like a traditional bank that tries to do everything.
We also let our design and tech specification teams work differently, allowing them the space to operate as they see fit because of our focus on good trustworthy people and our strong organizational focus on agility and digitalization. For example, our group head of digital banking works out of Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), while Nomo’s head works out of London, UK, and some of the team doing the coding work are in Egypt. That is partly the result of Covid-19 but also reflective of new more flexible ways of working. After all, the bank can now be managed worldwide through a smartphone app, so why cannot the team running it?
Our strength is that we’re going to be fully digital and Islamic, turning technology that is revolutionizing the industry into a strength that we can harness to grow. You must have a competitive edge and strategy as well, of course. Our differentiator is that there is no other Islamic digital-only bank. Nomo is unique.
Q2. Tell me about Boubyan’s new shariah-compliant Nomo digital bank?
A2. Nomo began life as a relatively simple invention that did an important job well – allowing individuals and businesspeople who are seeking Sharia-compliant products and services to bank digitally at the swipe of their fingers. It began as a plain vanilla product that evolved over time with new functions being added as we learnt from the customer. It began as a sterling-only product. It now boasts:
a dollar account,
euro account,
& Apple Pay functionality.
A Sharia-compliant digital mortgage account is imminent as well, as Nomo continues to evolve.
Q3. Why do you think Nomo is necessary?
A3. It meets a need in the market. Boubyan Bank also did a survey pre- and post-launch to design and evolve Nomo based on what customers actually want. The voice of the customer is central in creating the products and services that we deliver. It informs our approach to investing in technology and people.
The latest survey showed a need for easy-to-use and understand investment functionality, so that is now being developed for Nomo, where relevant, and indeed for all our digital services and relevant mass wealth management lines of business. We discovered that:
52% of customers had average to below-average knowledge of investments,
& only 28% had very good knowledge.
This showed us we needed to educate customers about what investments are, the difference between various types, and what they should consider before they invest. This is the strong and honest approach, and it will give us confident and active investors. We’ve taken this knowledge from the surveys on board and will act accordingly.
Q4. What are your global ambitions for Nomo & indeed Boubyan Bank?
A4. I’m very open-minded about how Nomo operates in different territories, and keen to avoid the trap of insisting on absolute brand consistency regardless of the context. That won’t get fast growth, which is what we want. For instance, we’ve had partners in Saudi Arabia and the UAE that wanted to roll out Nomo under their own brand. Another, in Jordan, wanted to replicate the model exactly – and retain the Nomo brand. Why not consider all avenues? We are flexible.
When talking to the Saudi Arabian bank we suggested using their infrastructure out of the UK to get reach, but our bank name – not Nomo, as that is not what they wanted.
A similar situation arose with a bank in Abu Dhabi who liked the idea but didn’t want to invest in the Nomo brand, only the infrastructure. A hosting agreement was reached about how to share profits, cost and branding under this model.
A third country – Jordan – insisted ‘no, we need Nomo’ so it was rolled out there with all attendant branding. Whatever gets uptake is of interest. I am ambitious for the digital shariah-compliant banking app, but also Boubyan Bank as a whole. Our digitalization drive, allied to Islamic values and offerings, can deliver significant growth.
Q5. Anything you would like to add or stress?
A5. A willingness to vary the offer in-line with the customer and/or a prospective partner’s need is important, as evidenced by our recent Nomo discussions in MENA. Indeed, flexibility is one Boubyan’s foundational strengths.
For us, it is better if partners use the Nomo brand. But, if that is a deal breaker, I don’t think now is the right time to start arguing or picking fights. It shouldn’t impede uptake and perhaps prevent Nomo becoming a global fintech giant for the Islamic world. Nomo’s growth – both under its own brand or that of other banks – is outstanding, and that is what matters.
We need the customer base – and continue to make agreements with other banks – so who knows where we will be and what might happen three years down the road in terms of its global uptake.
As ever, having a strategy and being honest, strong, and good partners are the crucial elements in delivering growth, so we will see where we end up as Nomo advances. I am confident for the future.