SME Bank of the Year 2025 nominee: CIMB
We are introducing the nominees for the SME Bank of the Year award. This category aims to acknowledge and applaud banks that demonstrate exceptional efforts in catering to the requirements of small and medium-sized enterprises.
CIMB Bank Berhad serves close to 500,000 SME in Malaysia fulfilling their bank needs and this represent almost 40% of the SMEs in Malaysia. With over 200 branches, 200 dedicated RM’s and 50 wealth managers and advise, we have a strong team to support the various business needs of customers from start to complex needs of their business.
How would you describe your bank’s role in the SMEs business journey considering their importance in the economy?
Post COVID presents many new challenges’ for SMEs which includes the needs to digitized their business , talent and resources crunch , increase cost of business due to geo politics and uncertainties and enabling their sustainability journey. CIMB has trained its team to be ready to assist the businesses to embrace the change and pivot and raise their game to be stronger and ready to play in a wider regional and global market. As ASEAN bank, we are supporting SMEs to be ASEAN ready and explore cross border opportunities.
Our solutions are geared to enable SME’s to focus on enhancing their grasp in technology and innovation. In this space CIMB has distributed almost 60% of the High Tech & Green Fund that was allocated by the central bank through collaboration with technology service providers (TSP), regional economic corridors under the various ministry and SME association to bring the TSP to work together to invest in high tech and green financing which formed 30% of the financing extended last year. The remaining was extended to working capital and other growth sector which enabled us to register a 70% growth exceeding the GDP of 5%.
CIMB continue to work with strategic partners to support the non-financial needs of SME. Our education program Taylor University was recognized as best digital education partner. We have also collaborated with Northern Corridor Implementation Agency (NCIA – a unit under Ministry of Economic) to enhance competency and capabilities of SME.
Why do you think your bank deserves to be awarded the SME Bank of the Year?
As the 2nd largest bank in the country, SME’s is in center of socio economic agenda which is crucial to strengthen the contribution of SME’s to GDP and employment. Our focus and strategies has been to enable SME’s to be competitive and be future ready and our growth number are showing we are doing the right thing.
Briefly highlight the top three projects or achievements your bank has delivered for SME customers in the past 18 months.
- Value Based Financing is a financial solution package which is focused on enabling to get preferential financing support to allow then to pivot to technology base investment. This focus has allowed us to deliver 30% of our financing growth from high tech and green as well as CIMB was able to fulfil the central bank aspiration by channeling almost 60% of their fund to deserving clients.
- Enabling customer is geography that has lesser RM support to be centrally served from head Office. This initiative if the enhance financial access to customer in areas that are not served by our branches and where RM access is limited. The pilot phase has been successfully deployed this year we are extending to more branches.
- In 2024 financing extended to SME comprised almost 40% in terms of unsecured loans for various productive purposed, includes high tech and green and supported by the launch of Value Based Financing and Sustainability Playbook for SME to start their ESG journey.
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