Kuwait Finance House appoints International brand consultancy Wolff Olins for strategic branding initiative

Wolff Olins recently won the competitive pitch for Kuwait Finance House (KFH). Early in the millennium, Wolff Olins worked as advisors for KFH on naming and brand architecture and are now taking the brand building strategy to new heights. After working with Wataniya, KFH is the second Islamic Bank win for Wolff Olins in the region this year.

Mr. Abed Bibi, Managing Partner, Wolff Olins, said, “We are very glad that KFH has come onboard and chosen Wolff Olins due to our long standing branding business in the region. Wolff Olins will help achieve new goals, businesses, experiences and relationships through revitalizing its brand image creating a spectacular new growth for KFH”. He added, “Wolff Olins has worked in Kuwait in each of the last few decades. In the 1980’s Wolff Olins created the Q8 brand for Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC)."

To name a few, Wolff Olins has worked in the UAE with Emarat in the 90’s, Etisalat in 2009, and Aldar in November 2010. In Qatar, the Qatar Financial Centre, Mathaf which is the Arab Modern Museum of Art (AMOMA) launched recently, Omran in Oman this year and Mobily in KSA this year.

Mr. Ziad Salameh, Brand Manager, Kuwait Finance House, said, “Building on solid brand fundamentals, top management at KFH are fully committed to the strategic value of the brand as a springboard and platform for regional and global expansion thus spreading across all that KFH stands for and believes in.  In order to have the experts undertake this project, we recruited Wolff Olins, the International brand consultancy and have the utmost confidence in them to undertake this project to new heights.”

Mr. Charles Wright, Wolff Olins lead strategist on Islamic banking said, “During the recent economic turmoil, Islamic finance has shown itself as resilient and has come of age. With shari’a compliant finance you have one less thing to worry about, giving a person peace of mind.”

Conventional banks form a large part of Wolff Olins client portfolio while Kuwait Finance House fills in a gap in the very close but fundamentally unique field of Islamic Banking. Islamic banking refers to a system of banking that is consistent with the principles of Islamic law (Sharia) and its practical application through the development of Islamic economics. Islamic banks take on a partnership mode in sharing risks and returns when involved in any transaction. The most often cited difference between conventional and Islamic finance is the prohibition of paying or receiving interest.

Islamic Banking is emerging in the past five years as a major trend on the global financial scene. Although Islamic finance began solely on the retail level offering deposit accounts and home and auto finance, today Islamic Banking also includes corporate and government finance, investing and insurance.