National Bank of Oman (NBO), the first local bank in the country, said that it is well prepared to launch its Sharia-compliant window and will have a presence across all regions in the Sultanate within a year once all regulatory approvals are in place. The bank is ready to roll out its Sharia-compliant products at its first branch in Al Azaiba and has well qualified staff and systems in place to offer a broad spectrum of these products and services to all its customers, said a press release. The bank has also appointed a Sharia Board comprising of well-experienced and knowledgeable Sharia scholars to supervise its Islamic banking business. NBO is very keen to make this plan the most attractive of its kind in the market. In addition, the NBO will provide to its customers in these branches, facilities for electronic self-service, such as ATMs etc. NBO's CEO, Salaam Al Shaksy said, "We at the NBO are very keen to provide products and services in accordance with the provisions of Islamic law to meet the various requirements of the community. To achieve this goal, we are committed to the pledge that we have made to become pioneers in this area, and offer innovative and Sharia compliant products and services-. The bank serves its customers in Oman through 67 branches and 173 ATMs and CCDMs as well as three branches in Egypt and one in the United Arab Emirates, Times of Oman reported.
