Bank Selection for SMEs: An Emirati Student Perspective

Abstract

The focus of this research is to identify the factors that influence bank selection attitude amongst student entrepreneurs seeking financial support for their prospective business. The data generated from this study will not only apprise nascent Emirati entrepreneurs’ perspective but also emphasize the role of the banking industry, in particular the UAE Islamic Banks, in the development and growth of national SME sector. The target population size is set as 500 Emirati graduating students and the target sample size is set as 410. Descriptive Statistics, Test of Reliability and Factor Analysis methods are applied to the collected data to check the reliability and validity of the model. Statistical tools such as Multiple Regression and ANOVA are then applied to analyze the data. The study findings explore factors that impact the expectations of prospective Emirati entrepreneurs and their bank selection criteria. Additionally, the findings identify significant factors that UAE Islamic Banks can utilize to update their strategies towards attracting prospective customers and increasing their client base by adopting innovative small and medium enterprise (SME) financial solutions for the emerging Emirati entrepreneurs.