The Latest Breaking News from SAMA

Saudi Arabia Seeks to Accelerate Development of Digital Currency

As the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) said on Monday that it was carrying out experiments with a central bank digital currency and exploring the potential benefits and risks of its use, economists told Asharq Al-Awsat that the local market was ready and enjoyed the ability to deal with the project…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Jan 25, 2023

Saudi Arabia Grants 90,000 Licenses as Real Estate Brokerage Law Comes into Force

Saudi Real Estate Authority said that it had received, through its electronic services, over 89,000 requests for real estate licenses in just two days after the real estate brokerage law came into force. The Authority issued over 72,000 licenses to individual practitioners and 17,100 licenses to establishments. Spokesman Tayseer al-Mufarrej…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Jan 21, 2023

SAMA to Begin Implementation of Basel III Reforms in Early 2023

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) announced on Wednesday that the Basel III reforms would come into force in the Kingdom’s banking sector in January 2023. “The move is in line with the internationally agreed timeline set by the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision,” SAMA said in a press statement. The…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Dec 29, 2022

Saudi Arabia to Announce Unified Insurance Regulator Soon

A unified regulator for the insurance sector, independent of the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), will be announced soon, Minister of Finance Mohammed Al-Jadaan stated on Wednesday. While the minister acknowledged that the insurance sector needs powerful entities capable of expanding within and outside Saudi Arabia, he stressed that the government…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Sep 29, 2022

SAMA: Government Housing Subsidies Not to Be Calculated in Customers’ Income

The Saudi Real Estate Refinance Co.

Asharq Al-Awsat · Sep 2, 2022

Saudi Central Bank Facilitates Entry of Fintech Companies into Kingdom’s Market

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) on Wednesday announced that it has updated the Framework of its Regulatory Sandbox. The move is part of its efforts to achieve several national strategic goals by promoting the regulatory sandbox's involvement in the Financial Sector Development Program (FSDP), a key objective of the Saudi…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Sep 1, 2022

SAMA Assets Reach Highest Level in 5 Years

The total assets of the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) surpassed SR2 trillion (USD535 billion) in July, for the first time in five years. According to the data announced in the monthly statistical bulletin issued by SAMA on Sunday, the assets of the Saudi Central Bank recorded a growth of SR156.7…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Aug 29, 2022

SAMA: ePayments Exceeded Cash for 1st Time in Saudi Arabia in 2021

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) released on Sunday a report on the results of an extensive study to measure payment methods in Saudi Arabia in 2021. The report aimed to assess consumer payment habits (cash and non-cash) across all market sectors, individuals, business, and the government sector. A key objective…

Asharq Al-Awsat · Aug 14, 2022

Saudi Arabia Completes E-Link Procedures to Automate Business Acceleration

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) completed the electronic linking procedures with the Saudi Center for Economic Business through the Tanfeeth program to directly link the technical systems of government agencies and banks operating in the Kingdom and integrate them.

Asharq Al-Awsat · Jul 26, 2022

The Uber files lit up the darkness of big tech, and showed why we need whistleblowers

People must feel able to speak out – and our laws must protect them, says former Facebook employee Frances Haugen

The Guardian - UK · Jul 16, 2022