Bahrain Development Bank - the leading bank in supporting small and medium enterprises in the Kingdom of Bahrain - announced joining the Small and Medium Enterprises Financing Forum as a new member within the global network of members, which includes experts specialized in financing small and medium enterprises from more than 80 countries around the world.

The SME Finance Forum aims to expand access to finance for these enterprises around the world through the exchange of innovative ideas and expertise in this field.

Commenting on this, Mr. Sanjeev Paul, Group CEO of Bahrain Development Bank said: “We are pleased to join the Small and Medium Enterprises Financing Forum, which is a great platform for cooperation with institutions working in the field of financing and development of small and medium enterprises and exchanging ideas and experiences at a global level” Paul also stressed that while this platform will allow us to learn from other members about global best practices in SMEs financing, it will also allow us to showcase BDB’s and Bahrain’s entrepreneurial ecosystem building model- which has been quite effective and successful.

About SME Finance Forum: The Forum was established by the Global Partnership for Financial Inclusion (GPFI) in 2012 as a knowledge center for data, research, and best practices in the field of SME finance. As an implementing partner for the GPFI, the International Finance Corporation (IFC) was tasked with managing the initiative.