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29 March 2024

Dubai SME, GFC launch education initiative

Published
By Wam

Gulf Finance Corporation (GFC), Shuaa Capital's wholly-owned lending subsidiary, has partnered with Dubai SME, an agency of the Department for Economic Development in Dubai mandated to develop the small and medium enterprise (SME) sector, to host the first in a series of workshops entitled "SME Essentials". The series aims at educating SMEs on how to obtain enhanced access to growth capital.

"We are pleased to partner GFC as part of our Capability Development strategy for upgrading the Dubai SME100 companies to the next growth level. GFC has been funding SMEs since 1999 and continues to play a pivotal role in the development of Dubai's SME sector," commented Abdul Baset Al Janahi, CEO of Dubai SME. "Educating SMEs, on access to funding, which remains one of the main obstacles to growth within the sector, is a top priority for Dubai SME and we are pleased to have partnered with GFC to kick off this education initiative."

Workshop participants received an overview of the various sources of funding, which range from venture capital to bank lending, asset finance and government funds. The workshop also addressed key requirements for seekers of capital from the perspective of a lender. In addition, GFC provided practical tips on how SMEs ought to present their business and financial case, especially in the early stages of their development, as well as some case studies on SMEs that have successfully captured the attention of investors and financiers.

David Hunt, CEO of GFC, stated, "The Dubai SME 100 is a well-recognised benchmark and quality seal, ranking the emirate's 100 top-performing SMEs. Typically the UAE's SMEs are fast-growing companies that require swift access to tailor-made financing solutions to support their development; services that conventional banks don't always offer. GFC can assist by offering a wide range of financing products specifically designed to suit the specific needs of individual companies, and has the ability to quickly turn around loan requests."

According to data from Dubai SME, 95 per cent of registered businesses in Dubai consist of SMEs. Overall, SME's contribute more than 40 per cent to Dubai's GDP and account for 42 per cent of employment but only receive 4 per cent of bank lending.