عربي English Türkçe اردو فارسى
Logo
Latest News
Business

SAMA to Introduce Independent Instant Payment System in Saudi Arabia

SAMA to Introduce Independent Instant Payment System in Saudi Arabia
TT
TT

SAMA to Introduce Independent Instant Payment System in Saudi Arabia

SAMA to Introduce Independent Instant Payment System in Saudi Arabia

The Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) has revealed a project to introduce an instant payment system in the Kingdom.

It announced licensing two digital wallet companies, bringing the number of authorized payment companies to four in the financial technology sector.

SAMA said this step is significant in the financial sector development program to achieve the Kingdom’s Vision 2030.

SAMA Governor Ahmed Alkholifey has expressed great interest in investing to develop a solid infrastructure for the financial sector.

He said this could be done by working on a program to develop digital payment solutions that mainly promotes economic development by increasing the effectiveness of financial transactions among all parties in the corporate and retail sectors.

In his speech on the sidelines of MEFTECH Conference, organized by SAMA in Riyadh, Alkholifey said the project will enable banking institutions and financial technology companies to improve current banking products, manage cash flows for the business sector and provide innovative services that meet customer needs and aspirations.

It will also enhance and raise their risk management efficiency and combat fraud and money laundering, he added.

Recent developments in the instant payment system will positively accelerate e-transactions on the medium and long terms and contribute effectively to achieving the initiative to move towards a society less dependent on cash, Alkholifey explained.

His remarks were made as the rate of e-payments in the Kingdom increased in H1 2019. The rate non-cash transactions increased to 36.2 percent, exceeding the target rate in 2020 of 28 percent.

He affirmed that the results of the performance of the Saudi payment systems have showed a record growth in the number of POS operations by 57 percent, reaching more than 1.6 billion payments through SAMA’s website alone.

The total value of operations amounted to an unprecedented record, exceeding SAR287 billion, with a growth rate of 24 percent, he said, adding that the number of operations implemented through NFC reached 918.5 million, with a growth rate of 442 percent.

Most Viewed

 
 
Business

US Economy Grew at Solid 3% Rate Last Quarter, Government Says in Final Estimate

FILE - The New York Stock Exchange, at rear, is shown on Sept. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)
FILE - The New York Stock Exchange, at rear, is shown on Sept. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)
TT
TT

US Economy Grew at Solid 3% Rate Last Quarter, Government Says in Final Estimate

FILE - The New York Stock Exchange, at rear, is shown on Sept. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)
FILE - The New York Stock Exchange, at rear, is shown on Sept. 24, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Peter Morgan, File)

The American economy expanded at a healthy 3% annual pace from April through June, boosted by strong consumer spending and business investment, the government said Thursday, leaving its previous estimate unchanged.
The Commerce Department reported that the nation's gross domestic product — the nation's total output of goods and services — picked up sharply in the second quarter from the tepid 1.6% annual rate in the first three months of the year, The Associated Press reported.
Consumer spending, the primary driver of the economy, grew last quarter at a 2.8% pace, down slightly from the 2.9% rate the government had previously estimated. Business investment was also solid: It increased at a vigorous 8.3% annual pace last quarter, led by a 9.8% rise in investment in equipment.
The final GDP estimate for the April-June quarter included figures showing that inflation continues to ease, to just above the Federal Reserve’s 2% target. The central bank’s favored inflation gauge — the personal consumption expenditures index, or PCE — rose at a 2.5% annual rate last quarter, down from 3% in the first quarter of the year. Excluding volatile food and energy prices, so-called core PCE inflation grew at a 2.8% pace, down from 3.7% from January through March.
The US economy, the world's biggest, displayed remarkable resilience in the face of the 11 interest rate hikes the Fed carried out in 2022 and 2023 to fight the worst bout of inflation in four decades. Since peaking at 9.1% in mid-2022, annual inflation as measured by the consumer price index has tumbled to 2.5%.
Despite the surge in borrowing rates, the economy kept growing and employers kept hiring. Still, the job market has shown signs of weakness in recent months. From June through August, America's employers added an average of just 116,000 jobs a month, the lowest three-month average since mid-2020, when the COVID pandemic had paralyzed the economy. The unemployment rate has ticked up from a half-century low 3.4% last year to 4.2%, still relatively low.
Last week, responding to the steady drop in inflation and growing evidence of a more sluggish job market, the Fed cut its benchmark interest rate by an unusually large half-point. The rate cut, the Fed’s first in more than four years, reflected its new focus on shoring up the job market now that inflation has largely been tamed.
Some other barometers of the economy still look healthy. Americans last month increased their spending at retailers, for example, suggesting that consumers are still able and willing to spend more despite the cumulative impact of three years of excess inflation and high borrowing rates. The nation’s industrial production rebounded. The pace of single-family-home construction rose sharply from the pace a year earlier.
And this month, consumer sentiment rose for a third straight month, according to preliminary figures from the University of Michigan. The brighter outlook was driven by “more favorable prices as perceived by consumers” for cars, appliances, furniture and other long-lasting goods.
A category within GDP that measures the economy’s underlying strength rose at a healthy 2.7% annual rate, though that was down from 2.9% in the first quarter. This category includes consumer spending and private investment but excludes volatile items like exports, inventories and government spending.
Though the Fed now believes inflation is largely defeated, many Americans remain upset with still-high prices for groceries, gas, rent and other necessities. Former President Donald Trump blames the Biden-Harris administration for sparking an inflationary surge. Vice President Kamala Harris, in turn, has charged that Trump’s promise to slap tariffs on all imports would raise prices for consumers even further.
On Thursday, the Commerce Department also issued revisions to previous GDP estimates. From 2018 through 2023, growth was mostly higher — an average annual rate of 2.3%, up from a previously reported 2.1% — largely because of upward revisions to consumer spending. The revisions showed that GDP grew 2.9% last year, up from the 2.5% previously reported.
Thursday’s report was the government’s third and final estimate of GDP growth for the April-June quarter. It will release its initial estimate of July-September GDP growth on Oct. 30.