Path Solutions, an established leader in providing cutting-edge software solutions to the Islamic financial services industry, is pleased to announce that Bank Al-Tamweel Wa Al-Inma (“BTI Bank”) has selected iMAL Islamic core banking platform for its retail, commercial and corporate banking operations, as well as for multi-channel support, analytics, risk and compliance.

BTI Bank is a new bank in Morocco created in partnership with Al Baraka Banking Group (“ABG”) and BMCE Bank Of Africa (“BBOA”) who own respectively 49% and 51% of the bank. The bank received approval from Bank Al Maghrib, the country’s Central Bank when Morocco’s parliament approved an Islamic finance bill that allows foreign banks and local lenders to set up participatory banks in the North African country. Morocco has become the latest Muslim-majority country to authorize participatory banking and has approved five banks in 2017 to provide Sharia-compliant products and services in the country.

BTI Bank wants to meet new business requirements that call for a diversified portfolio of innovative participatory banking products in Morocco, in addition to addressing compliance and regulatory requirements. iMAL will allow fast and efficient delivery of innovative, customer-oriented alternative banking services to expand BTI Bank’s business. The new system will cover internet banking, mobile banking, participatory invest, participatory treasury, delivery channels, trade finance operations and financial messaging, while ensuring compliance with local participatory banking regulations.

“We recognize today’s challenges and competition”, said Mr. Mohamed Maarouf, General Manager at BTI Bank. “Our strategy is to benefit from information technology evolvement as it is impossible to attain long-term business objectives without leveraging the benefits of information technology in this digital age. We believe that iMAL Islamic core banking platform will support us in our mission of pursuing our growth strategy. iMAL will provide a sound infrastructure that will allow our bank to foster considerable innovation by launching a series of products that comply with the tenets of participatory banking”.

BTI Bank chose Path Solutions above a number of competitors after an in-depth review by the bank’s selection committee. With iMAL Islamic core banking platform already in use in French language across Africa, Path Solutions was clearly the obvious choice.

“Information technology plays a leading role in Africa”, commented Mohammed Kateeb, Path Solutions’ Group Chairman & CEO. “We are glad to see our multi-award winning iMAL Islamic core banking platform being selected by the second participatory bank in Morocco, not least due to the wealth of experience Path Solutions has acquired over the past twenty-five years in providing proven Sharia-based software solutions to its large client base. BTI Bank will be running on modern, open technology, thus giving robust quality to its daily banking operations”.

Kateeb added, “Our rapid growth in Morocco underscores our strategy to gain significant market share across the African continent and become the Islamic core banking system vendor of choice throughout the region”.

This new win will serve as a platform for Path Solutions to expand its services into the growing African market. Last November, the new bank announced that it would open twenty branches all over the Kingdom in its first five years of business.