The Bahrain Development Bank (BDB) and Kuwait Finance House, Bahrain (KFH-Bahrain) today announced that they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the establishment of a company to finance and invest in Small and Medium Size Enterprises (SME) with an initial investment of $10 million. At a signing ceremony held at the Ministry of Finance, the parties announced that each would contribute half of the investment. The company is intended to finance entrepreneurs and small & medium size enterprises in Bahrain. This venture represents a new dimension for the Bahrain Development Bank, whereby the financing and investment are offered through Shariah compliant mechanisms in alliance with KFH-Bahrain - a leading provider of Islamic commercial and investment banking products and services. Working together the BDB and KFH-Bahrain bring to bear the required experience and resources to both make this company a success and to add value and provide support to those businesses that will receive financing through the company. While BDB has a wealth of expertise in financing entrepreneurs and small & medium size enterprises, KFH-Bahrain has a strong track record of launching successful investments in Bahrain as well as internationally. Commenting on the announcement, Shaikh Ebrahim Bin Khalifa Al Khalifa Undersecretary of the Ministry of Finance and Chairman of the Bahrain Development Bank, said "The establishment of this company is in line with the strategic objectives of the Bank and its ongoing efforts to promote economic growth, diversification and advancement in Bahrain. In support of these goals, BDB places great emphasis on helping small and medium-sized projects and businesses in Bahrain to meet their specific requirements and we are confident that the creation of this new company will be yet another important step forward in our efforts to help Bahraini companies thrive and prosper. We are particularly pleased to be launching this initiative with KFH-Bahrain, who like BDD, has shown both a strong commitment to providing funding and assistance to businesses in the Kingdom as well as to the overall promotion of the economy and growth across a broad range of industry sectors." Mr. Abdulhakeem Alkhayyat, General Manager of KFH-Bahrain, added "KFH-Bahrain is delighted to be joining hands with the BDB to support Bahraini entrepreneurs and businesses with strong potential for development. Since the establishment of our Bank in Bahrain, we have focused on channeling our time and resources into projects that can help promote growth in the local economy and we believe that support for new and existing SMEs is critical to the long term economic advancement of the Kingdom. KFH-Bahrain has already made significant contributions in this area and we are eager to continue to play a role in providing both funding and technical and management support to Bahraini companies and entrepreneurs." Adding further strength to the company is the participation by other leading development agencies such as ,the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, to whom Bahrain has played a vital role in providing technical consultancy for this proposition.