Ithmaar Bank, a Bahrain-based Islamic retail bank, recently organised a specialised training programme for employees involved in trade finance activities.

The focused programme was arranged by the Ithmaar Bank Compliance and Anti-Money Laundering and the Human Resources departments as part of the bank’s commitment to combatting money laundering, said a statement.

Employees from the Banking Operations, the Commercial and Financial Institutions and the Risk Management departments attended the course which was delivered by the Bahrain Institute of Banking and Finance.

The training programme was organised in line with the bank’s longstanding commitment to continuously investing in its people.

“Ithmaar Bank has long recognised its employees as its greatest asset, and we invest heavily in ensuring they remain among the best in the world,” said Ithmaar Bank chief executive officer Ahmed Abdul Rahim. “As a pioneering Islamic retail bank, we also recognise the important role we must play in contributing to the development of the banking and finance industry,” he said.

“This training programme helps develop our employees, while also contributing to combat money laundering activities,” said Abdul Rahim. “I am pleased to note our employees’ success in this regard, and I wish them all the very best,” he said.

Ithmaar Bank head of human resources Enas Rahimi said the course, entitled “Trade Based Money Laundering”, was exclusively tailored to finance professionals.

“Regulators and international bodies view trade finance as a higher risk area used in money laundering and terrorism financing,” said Rahimi. “The focus on these risks has increased, and financial institutions like Ithmaar Bank need to have specific training to cover the relevant definitions, methodologies and preventative steps,” she said. –TradeArabia News Service