A drive among Islamic banks to improve customer service looks to be bearing fruit, with data released for 2013 showing that Shariah-compliant lenders in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) edged their traditional counterparts in a number of key performance areas.

Islamic banks placed first in three categories of the 9th Annual UAE Bank Benchmarking Index for Service Excellence (2013), compiled by Ethos Consultancy, with one of them also taking the overall top spot. The index is viewed by banks and the wider business community as a useful barometer for gauging customer service performance across the sector.

The Regional Director for the Middle East at Oxford Business Group (OBG), Jana Treeck, said the data showed that the Islamic banking segment had sharpened its focus on customer service, despite feeling the weight of a challenging economic climate. “A competitive environment and higher customer expectations have combined to put service delivery in the spotlight,” she said. “Islamic banks have clearly taken on board the findings of surveys like the annual index compiled by Ethos and invested in service provision.”

In the survey, Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank (ADIB) was ranked best overall bank, while also taking top spot for its website. Dubai Islamic Bank won the best call centre category and Noor Islamic Bank placed first for most improved branches.

The developments taking place in the UAE’s Islamic banking sector, and across the financial services industry as a whole, will be scrutinised in The Report: Abu Dhabi 2015, OBG’s forthcoming report on the Emirate’s economy.

Other key issues set to be explored include the move by Islamic lenders to target retail banking as a means of driving domestic growth, including an analysis of ADIB’s acquisition of Barclays UAE

OBG will team up with ADIB for its forthcoming report in what marks an eighth year of partnership. The bank will work with OBG to compile the Islamic financial services chapter of The Report: Abu Dhabi 2015.

Treeck said she was thrilled that the Group’s research operations in Abu Dhabi would once again benefit from ADIB’s input. “The UAE’s banking industry is currently in the midst of transition, with the rapidly-expanding Islamic segment proving to be a key player in redefining the sector’s landscape,” she said. “I am delighted that our colleagues at the Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank will be helping us to analyse the significance of these changes and what they mean for the global business community.”

The Report: Abu Dhabi 2015 will be a vital guide to the many facets of the Emirate, including its macroeconomics, infrastructure, banking and other sectoral developments. The publication will be available in print or online.

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