
Emirates Development Bank Signs MoU with Hamriyah Free Zone and Sharjah Airport International Free Zone to Enhance Bankability of Startups and SMEs
Sharjah, UAE: 1st June 2022 – The Emirates Development Bank (EDB), the key financial
engine of the UAE’s economic diversification and industrial transformation
agenda, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Hamriyah Free
Zone in Sharjah and the Sharjah Airport International Free Zone (SAIF) to provide
financial support to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and startups operating
in either of the free zones.
The MoU was signed at SAIF’s headquarters in Sharjah by
His Excellency Saud Salim Al Mazrouei, Director of Hamriyah Free Zone and SAIF,
and Ahmed Mohamed Al Naqbi, Chief Executive Officer of EDB. The MoU reflects
the shared commitment to developing a supportive environment for
business and accelerating the UAE’s economic diversification agenda by championing
pioneering projects and emerging industries.
Under the MoU, EDB will offer its range of flexible
financial solutions to SMEs and start-ups in Hamriyah Free Zone and SAIF, including
capex financing for expansion or facility upgrades, greenfield and brownfield
project finance, and financial support for the integration of Industry 4.0
technologies or clean energy transition.
A Significant Step
His Excellency Saud Salim Al Mazrouei said, “EDB’s support
for companies within the Hamriyah Free Zone and SAIF will provide a significant
boost to Sharjah’s economic diversification efforts, encouraging entrepreneurship
and enabling a new generation of businesses to scale and grow. The MoU also unlocks
new financing potential for companies seeking to open operations in Sharjah,
complementing existing initiatives in both free zones to enhance SMEs’
contribution to the local economy through facilities, advice and networking.”
Al Mazrouei noted that the Emirates Development Bank is
an important national institution, providing financing and sustainable banking
solutions for a critical segment of the national economy. “The MoU is a testament
to our joint efforts to nurture an entrepreneurial ecosystem in Sharjah. We are
both deeply committed to helping emerging companies in our free zones expand their
businesses and, as a result, contribute to the sustainable economic growth of
the UAE.”
Supporting emerging businesses
For his part, Ahmed Mohamed Al Naqbi said, “In line
with our strategy to support the UAE’s economic diversification and industrial
transformation agenda, EDB is helping to enhance the bankability of SMEs, start-ups
and innovative projects launched by younger entrepreneurs across the country. Our
goal is to facilitate their access to our range of financial services, enabling
them to develop and expand their businesses, develop new economic sectors – especially
those based on advanced technologies – and support sustainable economic
development.”
Al Naqbi noted that the MoU with two of Sharjah’s
leading freezones reflects EDB’s policy of developing and then utilizing nationwide
partnerships to achieve their objectives. This agreement will increase the
bank’s pipeline of projects, helping them to identity promising companies that
will benefit from financial support such as capex investment and credit
guarantees, or non-financial services such as business advisory services, coaching,
consulting, mentoring, and market research. Both parties also discussed the
possibility of arranging webinars and roadshows to familiarize companies operating
in the free zones with the financing facilities offered by EDB.
He added: “EDB’s objective is to maximize its economic
impact on the economy of the UAE. Our financial solutions are offered with high
loan-to-value ratios with competitive rates, long tenors and grace periods,
especially for companies that rate highly on our Development Impact Scorecard –
which we developed to support projects that have a significant impact on the
national economy. We are also enhancing bankability of this crucial sector through
our digital banking app, which provides a bank account with an IBAN number in
less than 48 hours, offering round-the-clock secure and convenient banking services
without minimum balance.”
Emirates Development Bank has set a target to deploy
AED30 billion of financing support to 13,500 companies within five priority
sectors by 2026. EDB works in partnership with the UAE’s commercial banks, supporting
projects that offer substantial developmental benefits for the wider economy by
assessing economic development impact criteria on top of the standard risk and
profit calculations undertaken by commercial banks.