Emirates Islamic, one of the leading Islamic financial institutions in the UAE, today announced the winners of the second annual Innovation Challenge, the banks inter-university competition that calls on students to devise new solutions that can make a significant contribution to the world of banking. The winners were recognised with internship opportunities at Emirates Islamic, along with cash and other prizes.

This year, six universities submitted over 60 ideas under the theme Reach More with Less, with each team having to develop an innovative marketing solution for the bank that would be memorable and could be implemented at a reasonable cost. Shortlisted teams worked with mentors from their universities and from the bank to detail their ideas into actionable solutions. Submissions were evaluated on the areas of financial benefit, innovation, practicality and quality of submission and judged by Emirates Islamics Innovation Team comprising industry experts and technology practitioners.

Middlesex Universitys Team Diverse won the top honours for their innovative Win as you Run concept, a CSR-focused campaign that combines the concept of fitness and healthy living with special offers on the banks products. Jamal Bin Ghalaita, CEO of Emirates Islamic presented the winning participants with a medal of accomplishment, a certificate of participation and a prepaid card of AED 5,000 for each team member, along with an internship offer at the bank.

The teams from University of Wollongong and Higher Colleges of Technology were worthy runners-up for their EI Club and Drone of Generosity projects respectively. Both teams were presented a medal of accomplishment, a certificate of participation and a prepaid card of AED 2,000 for each team member.
Commenting during the award ceremony, Bin Ghalaita stated: We recognise that the potential for innovation runs high among the youth offering us a fantastic opportunity to tap into their creative minds. I am personally very excited by the proposals presented by the winning teams. We hope that this experience has been as rewarding to them as it has been to us and provided them a unique opportunity to learn, compete and succeed in the corporate arena. We look forward to further developing their talent during their internship at the bank.

The Innovation Challenge was open to undergraduate students in the UAE. Each team had to submit a detailed plan, complying with the original theme and compliant to regulatory, Sharia and economic practices.