Saudi Central Bank Granted Operation Permission to 4 Fintech Companies

The Saudi Central Bank released a statement stating that they have given license to a new set of organizations to offer Open Banking Services in the Regulatory Sandbox, Sanam Aliliddikhar for IT, Spare Arabian Financial organization, Wally Global Arabia, and Istishraf Al-Bayanat for Financial Technology. 

This brings the total number of enterprises authorized to operate underneath SAMA's Regulatory Sandbox to 42, with 15 having graduated by acquiring complete approvals and being licensed by SAMA.

This step advances a multitude of aspirational strategic priorities. This includes boosting and expanding finance services provided within the finance market, growing income, payouts, and investing activities. Also, it raises the level of financial inclusion and consciousness among all society sections, in line with the Financial Sector Development Program (FSDP) goals. 

Furthermore, this step adds to the achievement of the FinTech Plan goals as well as Saudi Arabia's economic expansion to become one of the world's renowned countries in the industry.

It is important to note that SAMA is presently "working on creating and incorporating an embedded top-quality connectivity to undertake on Open Banking Solutions in the Kingdom with the most creative and best practices within a predetermined timeframe, besides the other players in the financial industry such as banks and Fintech firms."

SAMA's Regulatory Sandbox Framework has just been modified to an Always Open Attitude. The revised framework allows financial institutions and domestic and international entrepreneurs to register at any moment of the year and introduce new creative business strategies to their customers.

SAMA has been collaborating with market players, comprising banks and FinTechs, to create a unified system for Open Banking that adheres to international best technical and regulatory standards, allowing users to build and deploy new and creative Open Banking Solutions. Please visit SAMA's website for further details.