DOHA: Qatar Development Bank (QDB) held its eighth Al Dhameen dialogue session with partner banks in Doha to identify ways to enhance the indirect lending initiatives for small and medium enterprises (SMEs) that do not have a credit history or enough guarantees to acquire finance.
Al Dhameen was established by QDB to encourage banks to finance promising SMEs held back by a limited credit history and insufficient collateral. Qatar-based private sector companies are eligible for guarantees of up to 85 percent of the loan amount.
The session discussed major challenges and ways to enhance Al Dhameen, and highlighted customers’ feedback. The programme team showcased achievements during the last three years and highlighted efforts towards the programme development with the partners: Enterprise Qatar, Bedaya Center and Qatar Business Incubation Centre.
The session was presided over by Abdulaziz bin Nasser Al Khalifa, Chief Executive Officer of QDB, and attended by 14 representatives of partner banks and financial institutions based in Qatar. “Al Dhameen came a long way since it was established three years ago, when it had only one partner,” said Abdulaziz. “The programme managed to achieve huge success in a relatively short period of time, with the support of its 14 partners.”
Through Al Dhameen, QDB also aims at supporting private and SME sectors in line of its efforts to achieve economic diversification in Qatar and lower dependency on hydrocarbons sector as a major source of income.
The Peninsula
