Banking

The past year has been a positive one for the Kingdom’s banking sector, with asset growth and profitability continuing the upward trend that has buoyed the industry in recent years. Growing cooperation between local and overseas banks has helped the sector, while remittance flows in the Kingdom are second only to those in the US. Government initiatives offer support for SMEs looking to boost employment and the non-hydrocarbons sector. In overhauling their technological infrastructure and rolling out new tech-based services to their customers, Saudi Arabia’s banks have a strong platform to expand their operations. The banking sector has shown itself to be particularly adept at building retail loan books and the new mortgage law looks set to help in this regard. This chapter contains a viewpoint from Fahad Al Mubarak, Governor, Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA), and an interview with Bernd van Linder, CEO, Saudi Hollandi Bank.