Technology & IT | Friday 6 November, 2015 1:33 am |

Souqalmal.com has been named Online Business of the Year at the recently announced Gulf Capital SME Awards 2015. Souqalmal.com was also highly commended in two other categories, the Gulf Capital Business of the Year and Entrepreneur of the Year. The fourth edition of the Gulf Capital SME Awards ceremony, organized by MEED in Dubai on 28 October 2015, saw 56 SMEs competing for the top spot across 11 award categories.
 

The awards were introduced by MEED in collaboration with Gulf Capital in 2012, with an aim to identify the UAE's most outstanding SME businesses, business leaders and entrepreneurs. The SME awards also offer a great platform for companies to network, giving them the opportunity to leverage the positive PR to further boost their business.

Souqalmal.com also received high commendation honours in the Gulf Capital Business of the Year category, while CEO Ambareen Musa received special mention and was highly commended in the 'Entrepreneur of the Year' category.

On winning the award, Musa said:

"This is a remarkable win for the Souqalmal team. Being named as the Online Business of the Year is a vote of confidence in our growth strategy. It has been a phenomenal journey so far and the award is a recognition of our efforts in bringing a higher level of transparency to the marketplace."

Souqalmal.com offers an unbiased platform empowering users to compare over 2,800 retail banking, insurance, education and telecom products in the UAE and Saudi Arabia. With just over three years in the market, the growth has been nothing short of exponential.

Launched in May 2012 as a financial comparison website, Souqamal.com allows users to compare credit cards, personal loans, car loans, mortgages, bank accounts and deposits in the UAE and KSA market. In less than a year post-launch, the company extended its search and comparison offering to include health, auto and content insurance, mobile phone and broadband plans, as well as schools and nurseries. Last year, the website also launched a section specifically designed for SMEs.

Musa added: "At Souqalmal, we strive to create financial awareness amongst consumers to help them better understand all aspects of their personal finance decisions before they commit. Winning the award validates the success we have achieved in providing a platform where users can find accurate, up-to-date and unbiased product information."

And the numbers speak for themselves. Souqalmal.com is on a high-growth trajectory with business revenues, website traffic and leads having grown by over 300% in 2014. The outlook for 2015 is also very optimistic with revenues expected to grow by over 90%.