Bahrain Development Bank (BDB) (Arabic ：بنك البحرين للتنمية） Is A Development Financial Institution Group Established By The Government Of Bahrain To Promote Investment In The Country. Registered With The Ministry Of Commerce And Industry And Licensed By The Central Bank Of Bahrain, BDB Is A Traditional Retail Bank.
Overview
Bahrain Development Bank Offers A Variety Of Tailored Financial Services To Meet The Needs Of Small And Medium-sized Enterprises In Bahrain. These Areas Include Business Finance, Islamic Finance And Tamkeen Finance To Be Applied In Manufacturing, Agribusiness, Healthcare And Other Service Industries.
BDB's Headquarters Are Located In The Diplomatic District Of Manama, Bahrain. As Of 31 December 2015, The Bank's Total Assets Were Valued At Approximately US $514 Million (BHD: 194 Million), Shareholders' Equity Was Approximately US $204.77 Million (BHD: 77.19 Million),
The Branch Network Consists Of 6 Established Branches And 2 Satellite Branches.
History
BDB Was Established On 11 December 1991 By Decree No. 19 And Commenced Operations As A Bank On 20 January 1992. Its Main Agenda Is To Promote Investment In Bahrain, Especially In Key Industries. The Initial Paid-up Share Capital Was 10 Million Dinars, Of Which 7.25 Million Were Subscribed By Government Entities And The Remainder Came From Local Commercial Banks And The Private Sector. The Government Committed To Providing Loans Of 4 Million Dinars At An Interest Rate Of 2% Annually For The First Ten Years, With The Aim Of Eventually Increasing Resources To 50 Million Dinars. Mr. Isa A. Borsaid, Then Deputy Minister Of Finance, Was The Founding Chairperson Of The Board And Roger J Webster (former Senior Vice President Of Business Development And Project Management, GCC Kuwait) Was Appointed CEO.
As At 31 December 1993, 19 Staff Members Were In Service And 49 Projects Had Been Approved For Investment At An Estimated Total Cost Of 2782.9 Million BD. The Bank's Authorized Contribution To This Fee Was 4.99 Million BD (17.9%). Twenty-four Of These Approvals Were Start-ups With An Estimated Project Cost Of 21.81 Million BD, Of Which About 36 Approvals (mainly Smaller Projects With About 32% Of The Bank's Funding) Had Been Paid In Full Or Were In The Final Legal Documentation Stage. As The Bank Was Still Absorbing Start-up Costs, It Was Not Yet Profitable And Had Accumulated A Loss Of 45,274 BD After Collecting 181,404 BD Of Interest On Government Loans. The Bank's 1993 Annual Report Contains A Wealth Of Information About Its Organisation And Operations.
In May 1994, The Bank Became The First Gulf Financial Institutions Group To Be Granted European Community Investment Partnership (ECIP) Status, Giving The Bahraini Private Sector Access To Finance And Support From Brussels And European Industry, As Well As An Extensive Network Of Contacts.
By October 1994, Khalid S.S. Shaheen Succeeded Roger Webster, While Earlier This Year, Shaikh Ebrahim Bin Khalifa Al Khalifa Became Chairperson Of The Bank, Replacing Isa Borshaid As Deputy Finance Minister.
In 2014, BDB Signed An Agreement With The Small Industries Development Bank Of India To Promote The Development Of Startups. In The Agreement, SIDBI Committed To Provide BDB With Technical Assistance In Risk Management And Credit Management To Further BDB's Mission.
In 2014, BDB Partnered With Microsoft To Launch The Imagine Cup Competition To Support Entrepreneurs And Creators In Building Solutions To Solve Some Of The World's Toughest Challenges.
In 2015, Moody's Awarded BDB Baa2/Prime-2/Negative Rating Due To The Bank's High-risk Loan Portfolio And Reliance On Public Funding.
Member Companies
In Addition To The Development Bank's Core Business, BDB Also Has Subsidiaries And Investments Aimed At Achieving Its Goals. The Companies That Make Up The Bahrain Development Bank Subsidiaries And Investments Include, But Are Not Limited To, The Following:
- Bahrain Business Incubation Center - 100% Shareholding - Developing And Assisting Emerging Entrepreneurs.
- BDB SME Fund Company - 99% Equity - Manages SME Fund
- Middle East Corner Consultancy - 28.6% Equity - Advises SMEs
- Arab Taxi Company - 20% Equity - Operates And Manages Taxi Services.
- EBDA Bank - 20% Equity - Provides Microfinance And Related Advisory Services.
All Of These Subsidiaries And Investments Are Held In Bahrain.
Ownership
Shares In The Bahrain Development Bank Are All Held By The Government Of Bahrain. This Makes The BDB A Government Parastatal Institution.
Governance
The Bahrain Development Bank Is Governed By An Eight-member Board, With Ghassan Ghaleb Abdulaal As Group Chairperson And Dalal AlQais As CEO.
