Banking

Kuwait’s banking system has improved markedly in the years since the global economic downturn: at the end of 2014, total customer and government deposits held by local banks stood at $129.6bn, up from $125.5bn at the end of 2013. Meanwhile, a series of new rules put in place by the Central Bank of Kuwait and other regulatory bodies in recent years have steadied the sector, providing a stable framework for future expansion. As of September 2014 the capital adequacy ratio in Kuwait’s banking industry was 18.3%, up from 15.6% at the end of 2008 and well above the 12% minimum. Kuwait’s sovereign net foreign assets, meanwhile, were valued at 269% of GDP at the end of the 2014 – the highest of any rated sovereign, according to Fitch – and government debt was at just 5.3% of GDP, an indication of Kuwait’s strong fiscal position.

This chapter contains an interview with Mohammad Y Al Hashel, Governor, Central Bank of Kuwait.