Saudi Arabia Completes E-Link Procedures to Automate Business Acceleration

Riyadh's strategy aims to make the city capital one of the ten largest city economies in the world (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Riyadh's strategy aims to make the city capital one of the ten largest city economies in the world (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Arabia Completes E-Link Procedures to Automate Business Acceleration

Riyadh's strategy aims to make the city capital one of the ten largest city economies in the world (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Riyadh's strategy aims to make the city capital one of the ten largest city economies in the world (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) completed the electronic linking procedures with the Saudi Center for Economic Business through the Tanfeeth program to directly link the technical systems of government agencies and banks operating in the Kingdom and integrate them. This step would contribute to automating and accelerating business processing to achieve Vision 2030.

The Saudi Center for Economic Business is concerned with facilitating the procedures for launching and conducting businesses and providing all related services under international best practices.

SAMA stated that it aims, through Tanfeeth, to improve and develop joint business with government agencies, understand the needs of those agencies, and overcome obstacles and difficulties.

It seeks to achieve the objectives of the Central Bank, enhance the technical infrastructure, and increase the level of services aiming to reduce administrative procedures and improve their quality in integration with financial institutions operating in the Kingdom.

Meanwhile, Riyadh Municipality inaugurated Remat al-Riyadh Development Company, the strategic arm, to enable the private sector to implement and develop municipal projects.

The development arm will also help provide services to improve the quality of life and provide direct value to residents and visitors of the region.

Its activities will focus on three main sectors: urban development, asset management, and municipal services.

Remat al-Riyadh will contribute to empowering the strategic role of the Municipality by supporting its operations and enabling the private sector to implement and develop municipal projects.

The mayor and chairman of the Riyadh region, Prince Faisal bin Ayyaf, confirmed that the company would contribute to accelerating the developmental plans for the area and improving residents' lifestyles.

Given that Riyadh is deemed full of tremendous and promising opportunities, the firm will promote this growth by involving the private sector in the municipal sector, as it aspires to be one of the top development companies in the municipal sector.

He indicated that the company's activities are based on three main sectors: urban development, municipal asset management, and municipal services, to improve the quality of services and municipal projects, improve customer experience and achieve satisfaction.

Prince Faisal added that the company aims to boost the level of municipal services and contribute to creating a vibrant society that enables economic and social development for the Riyadh region.

Remat al-Riyadh CEO Abdullah Abu Daoud said that the company aspires to contribute to making Riyadh an ideal and successful model by developing and shaping the future of the municipal sector based on strategic priorities aimed at providing quality projects and services that contribute to the prosperity and improvement of the region and the progress of the area.

It also aims to improve quality of life, achieve financial sustainability, and develop attractive and innovative business models in partnership with the private sector.

During the past year, Saudi Arabia launched the Riyadh city strategy to make the capital one of the ten largest city economies in the world.



Honda and Nissan Start Merger Talks in Historic Pivot

Makoto Uchida, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President and CEO of Nissan Motor Corporation, Toshihiro Mibe, Director, President and Representative Executive Officer of Honda and Takao Kato, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President & CEO of Mitsubishi Motors, attend a joint press conference on their merger talks, in Tokyo, Japan, December 23, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
Makoto Uchida, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President and CEO of Nissan Motor Corporation, Toshihiro Mibe, Director, President and Representative Executive Officer of Honda and Takao Kato, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President & CEO of Mitsubishi Motors, attend a joint press conference on their merger talks, in Tokyo, Japan, December 23, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
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Honda and Nissan Start Merger Talks in Historic Pivot

Makoto Uchida, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President and CEO of Nissan Motor Corporation, Toshihiro Mibe, Director, President and Representative Executive Officer of Honda and Takao Kato, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President & CEO of Mitsubishi Motors, attend a joint press conference on their merger talks, in Tokyo, Japan, December 23, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon
Makoto Uchida, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President and CEO of Nissan Motor Corporation, Toshihiro Mibe, Director, President and Representative Executive Officer of Honda and Takao Kato, Director, Representative Executive Officer, President & CEO of Mitsubishi Motors, attend a joint press conference on their merger talks, in Tokyo, Japan, December 23, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

Honda and Nissan have started talks toward a potential merger, they said on Monday, a historic pivot for Japan's auto industry that underlines the threat Chinese EV makers now pose to some of the world's best known car makers, Reuters said.
The integration would create the world's third-largest auto group by vehicle sales after Toyota and Volkswagen. It would also give the two companies scale and a chance to share resources in the face of intense competition from Tesla and more nimble Chinese rivals, such as BYD.
The merger of the two storied Japanese brands - Honda is Japan's second-largest automaker and Nissan its no. 3 - would mark the biggest reshaping in the global auto industry since Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and PSA merged in 2021 to create Stellantis in a $52 billion deal.
Smaller Mitsubishi Motors, in which Nissan is top shareholder, was also considering joining, the companies said. The chief executives of all three companies held a joint press conference in Tokyo.
"The rise of Chinese automakers and new players has changed the car industry quite a lot," Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe told the press conference.
"We have to build up capabilities to fight with them by 2030, otherwise we'll be beaten," he said.
The two companies would aim for combined sales of 30 trillion yen ($191 billion) and operating profit of more than 3 trillion yen through the potential merger, they said.
They aimed to wrap up talks around June 2025 and then set up a holding company by August 2026, at which time both companies' shares would be delisted.
Honda has a market capitalisation of more than $40 billion, while Nissan is valued at about $10 billion.
Honda will appoint the majority of the holding company's board, it said.
Combining with Mitsubishi Motors would take the Japanese group's global sales to more than 8 million cars. The current No. 3 group is South Korea's Hyundai and Kia .
Honda and Nissan have been exploring ways to bolster their partnership, including a merger, Reuters reported last week.
The two companies said in March they were considering cooperation on electrification and software development. They agreed to conduct joint research and widened the collaboration to Mitsubishi Motors in August.
Last month, Nissan announced a plan to cut 9,000 jobs and 20% of its global production capacity after sales plunged in the key China and U.S. markets. Honda also reported worse-than-expected earnings due to declining sales in China.
Like other foreign carmakers, Honda and Nissan have lost ground in the world's biggest market China to BYD and other local brands that make electric and hybrid cars loaded with innovative software.
In a separate online press conference with the Foreign Correspondents Club of Japan on Monday, former Nissan chairman Carlos Ghosn said he did not believe the Honda-Nissan alliance would be successful, saying the two automakers were not complementary.
Ghosn is wanted as a fugitive in Japan for jumping bail and fleeing to Lebanon. His 2018 arrest for financial wrongdoing pitched Nissan into a crisis.
French automaker Renault, Nissan's largest shareholder, is open in principle to a deal and would examine all the implications of a tie-up, sources have said.
Taiwan's Foxconn, seeking to expand its nascent EV contract manufacturing business, approached Nissan about a bid but the Japanese company rejected it, sources have told Reuters.
Foxconn decided to pause the approach after it sent a delegation to meet with Renault in France, Bloomberg News reported on Friday.
Shares in Honda ended the day up 3.8%, Nissan rose 1.6% and Mitsubishi Motors gained 5.3% after the news reports on the details of the planned merger, while the benchmark Nikkei closed up 1.2%.