Saudi Arabia TDF launches Digital Lending Service in 60 days with Temenos & Systems Limited

A brand-new digital service has been introduced to streamline access to financing options from the Tourism Development Fund (TDF) in Saudi Arabia. This initiative, powered by Temenos and implemented by Systems Limited utilizes the Temenos cloud banking platform for swift digital customer onboarding and loan origination to ensure a smooth and fast customer experience. 

October 4, 2021: Temenos, a banking software company, announced that the Tourism Development Fund (TDF) of Saudi Arabia has successfully launched a digital lending service with Temenos in just 60 days. This innovative service is designed to offer quick access to financing solutions from TDF for investors and businesses within the tourism sector. With a budget of SAR 15 billion (equivalent to USD 4 billion), the fund aims to foster tourism investments and promote the tourism industry, aligning with Saudi Arabia's economic diversification plan Vision 2030. 

Considering the unprecedented challenges posed by the ongoing pandemic, this new digital service greatly accelerates the process for local and international tourism investors to secure financing. At present, the service focuses on corporate lending and treasury investment products, providing a seamless digital process for onboarding and loan initiation. 

This technological solution is underpinned by Temenos’ cloud native Infinity platform and Transact core system, hosted on the Oracle Cloud infrastructure within Saudi Arabia. By capitalizing on the user-friendly features of Temenos, its modern microservices architecture, and the benefits of a low-code environment, the Tourism Development Fund (TDF) gains agility, speed, and a swift time-to-market. Thanks to the support of local partner Systems Limited, TDF was able to adopt an incremental approach to development, allowing them to go live with the initial phase of the digital service in just two months. 

The Tourism Development Fund (TDF) specializes in tailoring financing solutions for those invested in the tourism sector. By leveraging the pre-built functions specific to the country and seamless integration provided by Temenos Infinity, the Fund was able to significantly shorten the timeline for implementation. To learn more about our partnership, read more: 

With Temenos, we have been able to build a greenfield digital service to serve our investors in record time. The first phase of the project was live within 60 days, and funding is already beginning to flow to tourism projects across the Kingdom. The Tourism Development Fund has a vital role to play in driving the growth of KSA’s tourism sector and in the diversification of our economy. Therefore, it was essential to have a technology partner that shared our vision and ambition. Temenos was the obvious choice. It is the global leader in banking technology with an agile platform and deep expertise that enables us to build rapidly and scale.

Qusai Al Fakhri
CEO, Tourism Development Fund

Temenos has an unmatched reputation in digital banking with many successful projects with financial institutions and lenders in the region. This deep experience and expertise were key to the rapid go live with TDF. With Temenos, we have streamlined access to funding that will advance important tourism projects. Over time, we plan to leverage the rich out-of-the-box banking functionality of the Temenos digital banking platform to continue to enhance the service and customer experience.

Yasser Alkhathlan
Executive Director – Business Technology, Tourism Development Fund
 

Launching a digital banking service in less than two months is a fantastic achievement. It shows the dedication and commitment of the Tourism Development Fund and its teams. TDF has bold ambitions, and Temenos’ open and flexible platform will allow TDF to continue innovating at speed and scale in the cloud as it grows. In addition to advanced technology, TDF will benefit from our 25 years of experience in the Middle East working with 120 financial institutions in the region, from digital challengers such as STCPay to the largest banks, including Al Rajhi. Together with TDF, we are proud to make access to funding that will boost tourism investment faster and easier.

Jean-Paul Mergeai
President International Sales, Temenos

Our many years of experience on the Temenos platform allowed us to launch TDF’s system in such a short time on the OCI Cloud. TDF’s team was extremely collaborative, and working together as one team with Temenos made this rapid implementation possible.

AMMARA MASOOD
Global Industries GM Banking and Financial Services, Systems Limited

Systems Limited Temenos is the platform of choice for digital banks that want to launch fast. It has over 70 neo and challenger banks worldwide running on its platform, more than any other vendor, and is ranked the top seller in the category in the IBS Intelligence Sales League Table 2021.

Temenos successfully completed the project as part of a consortium led by Almoammar Information Systems (MIS) with National Data Consultants (Systems Limited), Temenos’ Saudi specialized implementation partner. Working together, the combined resources and expertise ensured a smooth integration and shortened the implementation time. 

About TDF 

Building a thriving tourism hub requires strong private sector involvement.  

The Tourism Development Fund (TDF) was established in 2019 with a capital of USD 4 billion to drive tourism growth in Saudi Arabia. TDF enables local and international investors looking to benefit from the sector’s high potential by providing viable funding solutions and leveraging its wide network of partners including government entities, public and private lenders as well as operators and service providers… all deployed to bring investments to life. 

Positioned firmly at the heart of Saudi’s tourism ecosystem, TDF is well-placed to offer guidance and funding options to SMEs, and tailored investment solutions to qualified investors. The Fund’s vision is to contribute towards achieving the National Tourism Strategy’s objectives by unlocking opportunities in the tourism value chain for private sector investors, while focusing on long-term sustainability. 

About Temenos 

Temenos AG (SIX: TEMN) is the world’s leader in banking software. Over 3,000 banks across the globe, including 41 of the top 50 banks, rely on Temenos to process both the daily transactions and client interactions of more than 1.2 billion banking customers. Temenos offers cloud-native, cloud-agnostic and AI-driven front office, core banking, payments and fund administration software enabling banks to deliver frictionless, omnichannel customer experiences and gain operational excellence. 

Temenos software is proven to enable its top-performing clients to achieve cost-income ratios of 26.8%, half the industry average, and returns on equity of 29%, three times the industry average. These clients also invest 51% of their IT budget on growth and innovation versus maintenance, which is double the industry average, proving the banks’ IT investment is adding tangible value to their business.  

About Systems Limited 

Systems Limited is a leading global SI company with unparalleled 4+ decades of expertise in digital, data & AI, cloud, digital banking, and beyond. We offer industry-specific services, products, and accelerators across numerous industry verticals, enabling our global clientele to achieve 360-degree value. Being at a leading edge of innovation, we have managed to spread our global footprint across 16+ countries through our subsidiaries, including Systems MEA, Systems KSA, Systems APAC, NdcTech, & EP Systems. Our key strategic partnerships with the world’s leading technology providers allow us to deliver unmatched technological capabilities that empower enterprises to drive and sustain long-term growth..