Saudi Arabia Approves Licensing of New Digital Bank

Buildings are seen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia February 16, 2021. (Reuters)
Buildings are seen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia February 16, 2021. (Reuters)
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Saudi Arabia Approves Licensing of New Digital Bank

Buildings are seen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia February 16, 2021. (Reuters)
Buildings are seen in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia February 16, 2021. (Reuters)

Saudi Arabia’s central bank announced on Tuesday that the government has approved the licensing of a third digital bank, called D360 Bank, with a capital of 1.65 billion riyals ($440 million).

It added that the Kingdom’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) was part of the consortium of companies and investors launching the new lender.

The creation of digital banks in the Kingdom is part of the Financial Sector Development Program within Saudi Vision 2030, which seeks to enable financial institutions to support the growth of the private sector, and open the way for new companies to provide financial services.

Two other local digital banks were granted the license to operate in the Kingdom last year, bringing the total number of licensed banks to 35 (11 local, three local digital banks, and 21 foreign bank branches), which reflects the strength, sustainability and attractiveness of the banking sector in particular, and the Saudi economy in general.

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) has been actively engaged in keeping pace with the latest developments in the financial industry and in line with the objectives of the Financial Sector Development Program that seeks to develop the digital economy; enable financial institutions to support private sector growth and provide opportunities to new companies and start-ups.

Meanwhile Reuters reported that the Saudi PIF held nearly $56 billion worth of US-listed stocks as of December last year, up from $43.4 billion at the end of September, boosted by the increased value of electric car maker Lucid.

On Sunday the government said Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman had transferred 4% of Saudi Aramco shares worth $80 billion to PIF.



German Central Bank Chief: US Tariffs Would Eat Up German Growth in 2025

President of the Bundesbank, Dr Joachim Nagel, speaks during an interview at the G20 finance meeting in Durban, South Africa, on July 17, 2025. REUTERS/Rogan Ward
President of the Bundesbank, Dr Joachim Nagel, speaks during an interview at the G20 finance meeting in Durban, South Africa, on July 17, 2025. REUTERS/Rogan Ward
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German Central Bank Chief: US Tariffs Would Eat Up German Growth in 2025

President of the Bundesbank, Dr Joachim Nagel, speaks during an interview at the G20 finance meeting in Durban, South Africa, on July 17, 2025. REUTERS/Rogan Ward
President of the Bundesbank, Dr Joachim Nagel, speaks during an interview at the G20 finance meeting in Durban, South Africa, on July 17, 2025. REUTERS/Rogan Ward

The Bundebank expects growth of 0.7% in Germany in 2026 but this could be eaten up if US tariffs of 30% threatened by President Donald Trump were implemented, the central bank's President Joachim Nagel told Reuters in an interview.

“If tariffs materialize in August, a recession in Germany in 2025 cannot be ruled out,” Nagel said in Durban, South Africa, where the meeting of G20 finance chiefs is taking place on Thursday and Friday.

The 30% tariff on European goods threatened by Trump would, if implemented, be a game-changer for Europe, wiping out whole chunks of transatlantic commerce and forcing a rethink of its export-led economic model.

“The outlook for the German economy has just improved, especially due to the fiscal program that has been announced and is now being implemented by the German federal government, which also sets the right accents: investments in infrastructure, in future technologies,” Nagel said. “But this uncertainty could significantly weaken a positive outlook.”

Also, German Finance Minister Klingbeil told Reuters on Thursday that the European Union should find solutions to its finances without using common borrowing.

Klingbeil said the EU had joint debt in the last few years, but that was in a crisis situation during the COVID pandemic, he said in an interview on the sidelines of a G20 meeting in Durban, South Africa.

“Overall, we need to resolve the finances of the EU differently than through a policy of joint debt,” he said.

“Fortunately, we are not in such a crisis right now,” he added.