Tagged: saudi arabia

February 25, 2020 @ 8:20 am By JD Alois  |  

Yesterday, the G20 issued a joint communique outlining shared goals for the group of the larget 20 economies in the world. The actual event is being hosted by Saudi Arabia with meetings ongoing. The document, embedded below, recognized the value of “digitalization of the economy”… Read More

January 29, 2020 @ 2:48 am By Omar Faridi  |  

The venture capital division of the most profitable firm in the world, Saudi Aramco, has reportedly invested $5 million in a blockchain-enabled oil trading platform, called Vakt. Vakt’s management confirmed the news on January 28, noting that Saudi Aramco Energy Ventures is now among its… Read More

January 9, 2020 @ 12:04 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Crude oil production in Saudi Arabia slowed down considerably last year, from 10,643 BBL/D/1K in December 2018 to only 9,890 BBL/D/1K in November 2019. Steady and continuous drops in crude oil production may be attributed to several different factors, such as the attendant impact on… Read More

November 5, 2019 @ 7:24 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Saudi Arabia-based Riyad Bank, one of the largest financial institutions in the Middle Eastern Kingdom, has decided to invest SAR 100 million (appr. $26.7 million) into its newly-launched Fintech startup investment program. Riyad Bank says it’s planning to accelerate the launch of new financial products… Read More

October 2, 2019 @ 11:57 pm By JD Alois  |  

This week, the Saudi Capital Market Authority (CMA) approved multiple “Financial Technology Experimental Permits.” The regulator granted the permits to: Buthoor Solidarity, Afaq and Emkan Alarabiya. Each company received permission to create an equity crowdfunding platform. The permission was given by Royal Decree No. (M/30)… Read More

August 21, 2019 @ 1:00 am By Cali Haan  |  

The Saudi Ministry of Finance has warned Saudi citizens that transactions involving cryptocurrencies could have “negative consequences” for traders because they occur, “outside the monitoring umbrella within Saudi Arabia,” Zawya reports. According to FX Street, the country’s “Special Governmental Committee for Awareness on Dealing with… Read More

April 28, 2019 @ 9:48 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

International payment systems provider Vocalink, a Mastercard company, announced last week it has partnered with the Saudi Payments, a fully owned subsidiary of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA), to launch real-time payments in Saudi Arabia. According to Vocalink, the partnership will enable account-to-account payments… Read More

February 27, 2019 @ 3:58 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Temenos AG (SIX: TEMN), the Switzerland based banking software provider, announced on Wednesday it has been selected by Al Rajhi Bank, a Saudi Arabia-based bank, to enhance its Islamic lending and financing product capabilities. The bank has opted for a complete renovation using Temenos T24 Transact as well as… Read More

January 23, 2019 @ 2:36 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Following a meeting of The Executive Committee of the Saudi-Emirati Coordination Council, the UAE and Saudi Arabia have announced plans to collaborate on a “joint pilot cryptocurrency” for possible use in cross border banking, Emerati state news agency WAM reports. The initiative is one of seven… Read More

January 20, 2019 @ 1:17 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

The Executive Committee of the Saudi-Emirati Coordination Council reportedly held its first meeting in Abu Dhabi with the participation of all 16 members from both sides to follow up on the execution of the joint initiatives outlined in the Strategy of Resolve. According to UAE’s… Read More

November 2, 2018 @ 9:21 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

U.S.-based blockchain technologies firm Blocktech announced on Friday it is partnering with Taibah Valley to launch the Blockchain Lab at Taibah University in Madinah, Saudi Arabia. According to Blocktech, the launch will be directed by artificial intelligence (AI) expert, Professor Walaa Alharthi, and it is claimed to… Read More

October 9, 2018 @ 9:29 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

On Monday, the Saudi Arabia Capital Market Authority announced it was opening applications for the second batch of the country’s Financial Technology Experimental Permit (FinTech ExPermit). Last year, the Authority announced the establishment of the FinTech ExPermit and opened the first batch of applications for… Read More

September 14, 2018 @ 8:50 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

On Thursday, Ripple announced the National Commerical Bank (NCB) of Saudi Arabia has joined RippleNet. According to Ripple, NCB was the first bank established in the country and, as of today, it is one of the largest financial institutions in the Middle East with more than… Read More

August 13, 2018 @ 3:57 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Citing “negative consequences,” “high risks,” and a lack of “government supervision,” the Saudi Standing Committee for Awareness on Dealing in Unauthorized Securities Activities in FOREX Markets has officially declared, “Unauthorized virtual currencies…illegal inside the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.” The announcement came August 12th in the… Read More

July 10, 2018 @ 3:47 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Last week, Saudi Arabia’s Capital Market Authority (CMA) announced the approval of the first two trial financial technology licenses to Manafa Capital and Scopeer. According to the organization, these trial licenses will qualify the two companies to provide crowd-funding service in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia…. Read More

May 8, 2018 @ 3:22 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Middle East alternative asset management firm Gulf Capital announced on Monday it has acquired a strategic stake in Saudi Arabia fintech, Geidea. According to the company, this deal with Geidea is claimed to be the largest acquisition in the Saudi Fintech sector to date and the… Read More

December 11, 2016 @ 2:03 pm By Jessica Pham  |  

In a grand mashup of investment and politics, President-elect Donald Trump and Tokyo-based SoftBank Group Corp.‘s CEO Masayoshi Son announced their plan this week to create 50,000 new jobs in the U.S. via a $50 billion investment namely in startups. Deal Street Asia reported that the… Read More

September 23, 2015 @ 9:54 am By Erin Hobey  |  

“My advice to female innovators and disruptors is to have balance in your relationships with mentors, advisors, close associates and friends that will ultimately broaden both your networks and channels to access capital. This is going to be critical as you scale, grow, and ultimately… Read More

December 15, 2014 @ 3:03 pm By Erin Hobey  |  

Hoping to be the next Alibaba of Middle East, the B2B marketplace Search in MENA helps SMEs create both new channels to attract clients online and build a vast network of product and service providers for Arab Enterprises in the MENA (Middle East and North Africa)… Read More

February 18, 2014 @ 9:40 am By JD Alois  |  

Is the annual awards launched by His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz bin Abdullah bin Abdulaziz , a Centennial Fund global initiatives . The first prize in the world for entrepreneurship , under the supervision of the advisory (Team one ) It serves as a pilot… Read More