UAE-based Emirates NBD has announced the launch of its new brand, the bank said in a press release on Saturday.
The new brand is the embodiment of the successful unity of Emirates Bank and National Bank of Dubai (NBD), two of the region’s leading financial institutions, it added.
The vision behind the flagship merger of 2007 was to create a national banking champion, in line with Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice President, Prime Minister and Ruler of Dubai’s growth and economic development plan, the bank said in the release.
Since the transaction, the bank’s assets have grown from AED165bn ($45bn) to AED291bn ($79bn), confirming its position as one of the largest banks in the Middle East.
Drawing inspiration from the collective heritage of two legacy banks, the new brand has been designed to reinforce Emirates NBD ’s values of customer focus, service excellence, innovation, integrity, passion for performance and teamwork, the bank said.
“The bank’s new logo, colours, imagery and messaging are modern and contemporary in style and reflect the timeless values that once made Emirates Bank and NBD local success stories.The look of the logo has been derived from the common arc elements of the two legacy logos, creating an icon that is symbolic of an equal partnership and common heritage, while being distinct, fresh and relevant,” the bank said.
“The chosen colours represent safety and confidence, with blue symbolising continuity, yellow standing for energy and dynamism and white representing peace stability and longevity, essential characteristics for a bank whose purpose is to protect and enhance the affluence of its customers.”
Speaking on the occassion, Emirates NBD ’s CEO, Rick Pudner, said: “The launch of the new brand marks and celebrates our achievements over the past two years during which we have focused on capturing synergies, streamlining operations and building on our common values. We feel that this new brand encapsulates the qualities on which we pride ourselves and gives us an identity upon which we can build our business, both locally and internationally.”
Following Saturday’s launch of the new brand, customers will see changes to Emirates NBD ’s identity almost immediately. Branch signage, ATMs and the bank’s marketing, sales and communication materials will be given a consistent look and will be branded with the Emirates NBD English and Arabic logos.
The Gulf region’s largest bank by assets, is not looking to issue any bonds this year but would consider the option in the first quarter of 2010, according to newswire Reuters.
The bank “is not planning anything this year … we will look again in the first quarter”, Pudner said when asked about any plans to tap the market through a bond issue.
“There is certainly interest (from investors) but we think it may be better to do it next year.”
Pudner also told Reuters in an interview the lender was expecting its loan growth to be at 10 percent in 2010.
Pudner said Emirates NBD would seek to expand its asset management unit and consider a joint venture as a strategic option for that goal.
“We would like to increase the size of it. We’re currently investigating how to do this. We’re open to a lot of options.”
Asked about the bank’s Tier 2 capital plans, Pudner said: “Our intention is to keep it for the time being … if things really get more positive in the next 18 months, we’ll look into the restructuring of some of that Tier 2 capital.”
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