The GCC wholesale banking market is complex yet attractive. However, non-local wholesale banks often struggle to compete with established players like QNB, Saudi National Bank, Al Rajhi Bank, National Bank of Kuwait, SAB, First Abu Dhabi Bank, and Emirates NBD due to limited local connections and market understanding. The following list, based on a recently completed extensive field study on the corporate reputations of GCC banks, outlines 10 key rules for success in wholesale banking within the GCC region (in no particular order):

1. Master the intangibles. In the GCC, much of banking excellence is in the delivery.

2. Know who really knows clients — clients. If you want to understand what GCC clients expect, ask them directly. Personal engagement matters more than secondhand insights.

3. Client satisfaction starts with needs and the prioritization of needs, not with expectations. Clients are people first and clients second. True understanding comes from recognizing their fundamental needs, not just their expectations.

4. Failing to prioritize needs means losing clients. Banking isn’t about satisfying expectations; it’s about addressing pressing needs — but in the right order.

5. Recognize GCC clients’ need for esteem. Making clients feel competent, offering them choices, taking responsibility for problems, finding solutions to problems, and acting compassionately — this is the name of the game in the GCC.

6. Ban advertising — deliver. Advertisements create client expectations that (often) cannot be met. Let service excellence speak for itself.

7. Manage via culture, not control. Direct supervision doesn’t work in an industry built on trust, nuance, and seamless service. Employee behavior should be guided through values expressed by the bank’s routines and behaviors. Empower employees at every level.

8. Fairness builds trust. Make sure services, procedures established, and the way the bank deals with clients interpersonally leaves them feeling justly treated — trust starts with fairness. Never forget: trust and understanding mean different things to different people. Overcommunicate. Proactively involving clients helps.

9. Never lose sight of the bank’s core role — fostering the client’s business. A bank’s real value lies in helping clients grow, always through the lens of their needs and priorities.

10. Hire for attitude, not just skill. Mediocre staff quality is an expensive way for a (foreign) bank to save money, especially in GCC countries. Hire the right attitudes. The best hiring strategy? Watch how people behave. Do employees truly understand the intricate cultural sensitivities across the GCC?

In the GCC, you need to do many little (significant) things, not just a few big things. Client involvement is key, persistence crucial.