Governor of the Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA), Dr. Ahmed bin Abdul Kareem Al-Khulaifi, affirmed that the opportunity is available for those wishing to obtain licenses to open banks and that the Authority published on its website the updated version of the basic guidelines and standards for applying for a banking license. He pointed out that these guidelines specify the requirements and procedures for granting licenses to banks and apply to applicants wishing to obtain a license to practice banking business in the Kingdom, including foreign banks wishing to establish branches of their banks. This came during a meeting held at Riyadh Chamber yesterday, in the presence of the Chairman of the Board of Directors Ajlan Al-Ajlan, Board's Members and a number of businessmen in a series of meetings held by the Chamber with ministers and senior officials in the government sector. Dr. Al-Khulaifi further said that SAMA has a number of applications for the opening of digital and traditional banks, pointing out that financing of SMEs increased to 5% of loans. He added that the financial sector development program comes within the framework of the goals of the Kingdom's Vision 2030 and seeks to raise the financing ratio from 5% to 20% in 2030, explaining that the government supports the program of 800 million riyals and the development of its products.
