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Saudi Central Bank Facilitates Entry of Fintech Companies into Kingdom’s Market

Saudi Central Bank seeks to prepare the infrastructure for technical financial institutions to lead the region in this sector (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Central Bank seeks to prepare the infrastructure for technical financial institutions to lead the region in this sector (Asharq Al-Awsat)
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Saudi Central Bank Facilitates Entry of Fintech Companies into Kingdom’s Market

Saudi Central Bank seeks to prepare the infrastructure for technical financial institutions to lead the region in this sector (Asharq Al-Awsat)
Saudi Central Bank seeks to prepare the infrastructure for technical financial institutions to lead the region in this sector (Asharq Al-Awsat)

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) on Wednesday announced that it has updated the Framework of its Regulatory Sandbox.

The move is part of its efforts to achieve several national strategic goals by promoting the regulatory sandbox's involvement in the Financial Sector Development Program (FSDP), a key objective of the Saudi Vision 2030.

The program aims to develop the Kingdom's economy, diversify its sources of income, enable financial institutions to support the growth of the private sector, and allow new companies to provide their array of financial services, SAMA said in a statement.

Moreover, the updated framework will also support the objectives of the Fintech strategy by making the Kingdom one of the world's leading countries in the field.

The central bank also indicated that the strategy will support a broad range of Fintech activities through several initiatives serving as catalysts for change, the most notable of which is having its framework updated, as it will allow Fintech companies to submit regulatory sandbox applications as of Sept. 6.

SAMA launched the regulatory sandbox initiative in 2018 to garner the participation of local, regional and international FinTech institutions and companies.

The initiative proved to be very successful as it enabled SAMA to adopt many services and products by issuing instructions and regulations, as well as launching many of those products and services to clients within the financial sector.

The number of regulatory sandbox-certified companies reached 38.

This transition will allow applicants to apply to the Regulatory Sandbox when they are ready.

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Syria’s Baniyas Begins Loading Iraqi Oil Shipments for Re-export

Long convoys of Iraqi diesel-laden tanker trucks line up along the Tartus-Baniyas highway as they wait to unload their cargo at the Baniyas port refinery on the Mediterranean Sea, on April 15, 2026. (Photo by Bakr ALkasem / AFP)
Long convoys of Iraqi diesel-laden tanker trucks line up along the Tartus-Baniyas highway as they wait to unload their cargo at the Baniyas port refinery on the Mediterranean Sea, on April 15, 2026. (Photo by Bakr ALkasem / AFP)
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Syria’s Baniyas Begins Loading Iraqi Oil Shipments for Re-export

Long convoys of Iraqi diesel-laden tanker trucks line up along the Tartus-Baniyas highway as they wait to unload their cargo at the Baniyas port refinery on the Mediterranean Sea, on April 15, 2026. (Photo by Bakr ALkasem / AFP)
Long convoys of Iraqi diesel-laden tanker trucks line up along the Tartus-Baniyas highway as they wait to unload their cargo at the Baniyas port refinery on the Mediterranean Sea, on April 15, 2026. (Photo by Bakr ALkasem / AFP)

Syria began loading its first tanker carrying Iraqi oil on Wednesday at the Baniyas port refinery, according to state media.

With maritime traffic through the Strait of Hormuz disrupted, Iraq's exports came to a halt and oil storage tanks began filling up rapidly, forcing Iraqi authorities to largely suspend production.

At the beginning of April, Iraq announced it had started transporting oil by truck through Syria in preparation for re-export by boat.

"The loading of the first oil tanker is underway in Syria today, under the agreement reached with the Iraqi side to transport Iraqi oil to the Baniyas refinery and then to the oil terminal for shipment by sea," Syrian Petroleum Company deputy CEO Ahmed Qubbaji told reporters.

"The quantity that will be loaded onto the tanker is estimated at around 500,000 tons" and the loading operation will take at least three days, he said.

According to Qubbaji, the agreement allows Syria to take "the oil we need for power plants in order to generate electricity, while the surplus is exported.”

The Iraqi oil ministry said in early April that it had begun exporting oil by truck through Syria.

Business

Riyadh Backs Seoul with 250 Million Barrels of Crude Oil

The screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), the foreign exchange rate between US dollar and South Korean won and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank, in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, April 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
The screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), the foreign exchange rate between US dollar and South Korean won and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank, in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, April 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
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Riyadh Backs Seoul with 250 Million Barrels of Crude Oil

The screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), the foreign exchange rate between US dollar and South Korean won and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank, in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, April 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)
The screens showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI), the foreign exchange rate between US dollar and South Korean won and the Korean Securities Dealers Automated Quotations (KOSDAQ) at a dealing room of Hana Bank, in Seoul, South Korea, Thursday, April 16, 2026. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man)

South Korea has secured 273 million barrels of crude oil from the Middle East and Kazakhstan through the end of the year, with supplies routed outside the Strait of Hormuz, presidential chief of staff Kang Hoon-sik said on Wednesday.

Asia's fourth-largest economy has also secured 2.1 million metric tons of naphtha over the same period, Kang said at a press briefing following his visit as a special presidential envoy to Kazakhstan, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Qatar over the past week.

"In particular, the crude oil and naphtha secured this time will be sourced through ⁠alternative supply routes ⁠unrelated to closure of the Strait of Hormuz, and will therefore make a direct and tangible contribution to stabilizing domestic supply," Reuters quoted Kang as saying.

Saudi Arabia had agreed to ship about 50 million barrels of crude oil already allocated to South Korean companies, using alternative ports near the Red Sea in April and May, Kang said.

Riyadh had also pledged to prioritize South Korean companies in allocating and shipping 200 million barrels of crude oil between June and the end ⁠of the year, and promised to supply as much naphtha as possible through year-end, including 500,000 tons requested by South Korea's government, he said.

Kang said Kazakhstan would supply 18 million barrels of crude oil, while Oman has promised 5 million barrels of crude oil and 1.6 million tons of naphtha.

He said the secured crude oil would be sufficient to power the economy for more than three months under normal conditions based on last year’s usage, while the naphtha volumes were equivalent to about one month of imports.

Kang said the oil and naphtha would be sourced from alternative supply routes not affected by a potential closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

He described his trip as driven by the urgent need ⁠to secure key energy ⁠supplies amid what he called an economic emergency triggered by the conflict in the Middle East.

South Korea relied on the Strait of Hormuz for 61% of its crude oil imports and 54% of its naphtha imports last year, Kang said, adding the government could not afford to wait passively for the regional situation to improve.

President Lee Jae Myung conveyed deep concern over the prolonged Middle East conflict in letters sent to the leaders of the countries visited, expressing solidarity and calling for joint efforts to address the energy security crisis, Kang said.

South Korea also held discussions with oil producers including Saudi Arabia and Oman on cooperation in areas such as constructing bypass pipelines and building oil storage facilities outside the Strait of Hormuz to mitigate risks from a potential blockade.

With additional funding allocated to expand domestic storage facilities, Kang said joint stockpiling with major oil producers could be expanded, helping secure stable supplies.

Business

UAE, Jordan Sign $2.3 billion Aqaba Rail Project Deal

UAE, Jordan Sign $2.3 billion Aqaba Rail Project Deal
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UAE, Jordan Sign $2.3 billion Aqaba Rail Project Deal

UAE, Jordan Sign $2.3 billion Aqaba Rail Project Deal

The United Arab Emirates and Jordan signed on Wednesday an agreement to launch a $2.3 billion rail project to Aqaba port and to create a joint company to build and operate it, the state news agencies in both countries reported.

The agreement covers the construction and operation of a 360-kilometre railway linking the mining areas of Al-Shidiya and Ghor Al-Safi in Jordan to its Aqaba port.

The project aims to transport 16 million metric tons of phosphate and potash annually, with a total investment value of $2.3 billion.

As part of the agreement, the UAE–Jordan Railway Company was launched as a joint venture between several Jordanian stakeholders and L’IMAD Holding Company, Abu Dhabi's newest sovereign wealth fund, the UAE 's state news agency said.

The project is the first step in building the Jordanian national railway network project to connect Aqaba with neighboring Arab countries, and to link the port with those in Syria and the Mediterranean, the Jordanian state news agency said.