Zain KSA Initiates 3 New Broadband Projects for Remote Areas

Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah al-Sawah with CITC Governor Abdulaziz bin Salem al-Ruwais and Chairman of Zain Saudi Arabia Prince Nayef bin Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah al-Sawah with CITC Governor Abdulaziz bin Salem al-Ruwais and Chairman of Zain Saudi Arabia Prince Nayef bin Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Zain KSA Initiates 3 New Broadband Projects for Remote Areas

Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah al-Sawah with CITC Governor Abdulaziz bin Salem al-Ruwais and Chairman of Zain Saudi Arabia Prince Nayef bin Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah al-Sawah with CITC Governor Abdulaziz bin Salem al-Ruwais and Chairman of Zain Saudi Arabia Prince Nayef bin Sultan. (Asharq Al-Awsat)

Communications and Information Technology Commission (CITC) and Zain KSA signed an agreement to implement three high-speed wireless broadband projects for remote areas of the Kingdom as part of the Universal Service Fund.

The three projects are expected to provide service to more than 800,000 beneficiaries in 3,900 villages across 28 districts of Riyadh, Eastern Province, Asir Region and Makkah.

Zain KSA confirmed on Sunday that it will exert all efforts to contribute into achieving the objectives of the National Transition Program (NTP) 2020 and Vision 2030.

The agreement was signed by CITC Governor Abdulaziz bin Salem al-Ruwais and Chairman of Zain Saudi Arabia Prince Nayef bin Sultan at the presence of the Minister of Communications and Information Technology Abdullah al-Sawah.

Prince Nayef lauded the efforts the communications ministry aiming at achieving NPT 2020 and Vision 2030 goals, confirming Zain's commitment to contribute in reaching those goals.

CEO of Zain KSA Sultan bin Abdulazizi al-Deghaither stated that the three high-speed broadband projects for remote areas include providing services to more than 800,000 users in 3,900 villages across 28 districts of each of Riyadh, Eastern Province, Asir Region and Makkah.

Deghaither reiterated that Zain KSA had invested heavily in developing its network, which provides high-end technologies during implementation.

These projects include the provision of high-speed broadband services to centers, villages and remote areas in various regions of the kingdom by enhancing investment in infrastructure and increasing wireless broadband networks coverage. Projects will also contribute to facilitating use of e-government services in achieving digital transformation.

Zain Saudi Arabia stocks rose 5.8 percent on Sunday after the company signed the agreement with CITC.

These developments came as CITC launched its index on monitoring the latest developments in information technology and communications sector in the Kingdom by the end of the second quarter of 2017.

According to CITC, the number of subscribers to telecommunications services which reached about 43.6 million subscriptions, of which 3.75 million are for postpaid lines, while subscriptions to mobile broadband services on mobile networks reached about 25.2 million.

The number of subscriptions to fixed-line broadband services reached 3.2 million, including DSL, fixed wireless connections, fiber optics and other wired lines.

As for the number of internet users in Saudi Arabia, CITC said that the number of Internet users in the country reached 24 million users.



Bitcoin Jumps to Record on Institutional Investor Demand

FILE PHOTO: A bitcoin symbol is displayed on a screen before US Vice President JD Vance speaks at a Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, May 28, 2025.   REUTERS/Steve Marcus/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A bitcoin symbol is displayed on a screen before US Vice President JD Vance speaks at a Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, May 28, 2025. REUTERS/Steve Marcus/File Photo
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Bitcoin Jumps to Record on Institutional Investor Demand

FILE PHOTO: A bitcoin symbol is displayed on a screen before US Vice President JD Vance speaks at a Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, May 28, 2025.   REUTERS/Steve Marcus/File Photo
FILE PHOTO: A bitcoin symbol is displayed on a screen before US Vice President JD Vance speaks at a Bitcoin conference in Las Vegas, Nevada, US, May 28, 2025. REUTERS/Steve Marcus/File Photo

Bitcoin rallied to an all-time high on Friday, powered by demand from institutional investors and crypto-friendly policies from US President Donald Trump's administration.
The world's largest cryptocurrency rose to a peak of $116,781.10 in the Asian session on Friday, taking its gains for the year so far to more than 24%. It was last trading at $116,563.11, Reuters said.
"Bitcoin's new all-time high is being driven by relentless institutional accumulation - major players are scooping up supply and drying up liquidity on exchanges," said Joshua Chu, co-chair of the Hong Kong Web3 Association.
In March, Trump signed an executive order to establish a strategic reserve of cryptocurrencies. He has also appointed several crypto-friendly individuals, including Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Paul Atkins and White House artificial intelligence czar David Sacks.
Trump's family businesses have also made forays into cryptocurrencies. Trump Media & Technology Group is looking to launch an exchange-traded fund to invest in multiple crypto tokens including Bitcoin, an SEC filing on Tuesday showed.
Ether, the world's second-largest cryptocurrency, similarly jumped nearly 5% to $2,956.82, after earlier hitting a five-month high of $2,998.41.