| Lyna Mohamad |
AS PART of Bank Islam Brunei Darussalam‘s (BIBD)’s efforts to enliven communities and create more engagement opportunities for residents, BIBD yesterday launched its first community hub, BIBD Connects, at the heart of the STKRJ Lambak community.
BIBD Connects is a concept developed by BIBD to provide a convenient and unique one-stop shop for all members of the public to enjoy amenities such as banking, food and beverage, and a dedicated leisure area.
BIBD Chairman Dato Seri Paduka Dr Awang Haji Mohd Amin Liew bin Abdullah, Minister of Finance II who launched the facility commented, “This year BIBD celebrates 25 years of Islamic banking success, and today we celebrate another accomplishment of its fundamentals – becoming an enabler of trade and commerce.
“Alhamdulillah, today we achieved this accomplishment within a single solution that brings communities together, creates more business opportunities and provides alternative income streams for Brunei’s economy.
“BIBD Connects is part of our strategy to promote the ease of doing business and enhance opportunities for local small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). In line with strategies under Brunei’s Vision 2035, the hub is also a key public-private partnership that will ensure continued development towards a more innovative infrastructure,” he added.
Meanwhile, Mubashar Khokhar, BIBD Managing Director and CEO, commented, “Alhamdulillah, the success of our first-ever BIBD Connects location is underpinned by the collaboration, dedication and customerfirst approach of BIBD and key government and private institutions. The result is similar to BIBD’s ‘Bruneian at Heart’ approach; BIBD Connects is a concept that understands Brunei and its people and it is much more than another distribution point for BIBD as it is the perfect fusion of Islamic finance with the real economy and the community.”
He further noted that BIBD Connects seeks to support young and budding Bruneian entrepreneurs, aligning with the national priority placed on developing the SME sector. It acts as a catalyst by providing opportunities to SMEs to showcase their talent and offerings as well as to take them to the next level.
“The concept of BIBD Connects is ‘not-for-profit’ and provides encouragement to SMEs by offering them retail space at less than half the cost compared with the market. BIBD Connects is also perhaps the best manifestation of sustainable public-private partnership (PPP) and exemplifies the superb coordination between the government and private sector.
Indeed the dream of BIBD Connects would not have seen fruition without the enthusiastic collaboration, help and unflinching support from the Brunei Government which provided BIBD with a sizeable plot of land to develop the project,” said Khokhar.
Located at the heart of the STKRJ Lambak community, the hub also features BIBD’s first-ever drive-through ATM, making daily banking engagements happen much faster.
The Lambak location also houses local vendors such as Roasted Sip, Rumah Gelato and Mr Baker’s Bakeshop.
Construction of the hub began late January and was completed by early March, showcasing Brunei’s capabilities on modern architecture and BIBD’s collaboration with local designers and contractors in design-thinking new concepts and making them into a reality.