ila Bank
“Can a regional Arab bank's digital-only sub-brand build a regulated, API-first retail banking platform that exports across the GCC and MENA?”
Founded2019
HQManama, Bahrain
IndustryFintech / Neobank
The story
ila Bank is the digital-only retail brand of Arab Banking Corporation (Bank ABC), launched in Bahrain in 2019 and later extended to Jordan. The strategy has been to layer modern mobile-first experiences (Hassala goals, Jamiyah savings circles, Al Kanz prize-linked savings, Apple Pay) on top of Bank ABC's licensed banking infrastructure. In 2026 ila completed a core banking transformation onto Temenos running on AWS, signaling a shift toward a cloud-native, API-first stack capable of supporting Bahrain's Open Banking Framework as a regulated ASPSP.
Product timeline
2019
ila Bank launched as a mobile-only digital retail bank backed by Bank ABC in Bahrain.· banking
2021
Integrated with Bahrain's national eKYC platform to accelerate customer onboarding.· banking
2021
Collaborated with Arab Financial Services (AFS) to power ila Blue & ila Switch credit cards.· card
2024
Launched Easy Payment Plan (EPP) feature for credit cardholders enabling installment purchases.· lending
2026
Migrated core banking and payments to Temenos Core Banking on AWS, delivered by Systems Limited.· pivot
Regulated entities
Conventional Retail Bank License (Branch)
Bahrain (Central Bank of Bahrain) · 2019
Arab Banking Corporation (B.S.C.) - ila retail branch
The stack
Payments / PSP
Banking / BaaS
Card issuing
Ledger
Lending
ila Bank / Bank ABC (in-house)ila Credit Cards (Blue, Switch, Gulf Air, Black, White)Easy Payment Plan (EPP) - credit card installment conversion
Open banking
Sponsor bank
Accounting gap: none