In this video interview with Euromoney, Fernando Morillo, Group Head of Retail Banking at Mashreq, explains how the bank is reconciling its long-standing legacy with a digital challenger mindset. “The entire organisation operates like a series of fintechs, which are quite autonomous,” he says. “That’s what drives the ability not just to innovate, but to do it at pace.”
A core enabler is artificial intelligence (AI), which Mashreq deploys in both visible and invisible ways. Customers increasingly interact with the bank through a highly intuitive AI-led chatbot that’s fully integrated with backend systems, enabling real-time data access and transactions. Behind the scenes, machine learning tools automate everything from fraud detection and risk monitoring to hyperpersonalised marketing and regulatory screening.
For Mashreq, digital innovation in the UAE is just the beginning. The bank is expanding its digital retail model into large, underbanked markets such as Egypt and Pakistan, using a single, cloud-based platform designed for scalability. “Everything is built once and for many,” says Morillo. “We measure success based on how much of our common code can be used across markets – and we localise the rest to follow.”
Looking ahead, Mashreq is investing heavily in digital wealth management, end-to-end lending solutions and generative AI that enhances human relationship managers rather than replacing them. The goal, Morillo says, is to provide a “digital-all” bank that can meet the increasingly complex needs of its customers – wherever they are.
One standout initiative that will soon be launched will allow expatriates in the UAE to open and operate accounts in their home countries via the Mashreq app in just five minutes. “This is a cross-border account opening function that is, to my knowledge, the first in the world,” says Morillo.
