Saudi Arabia joins the Worldwide Crypto Game
9/4/2022, 11:28 AM
Saudi Arabia is taking steps to catch up to its neighbors in the virtual currency world. The country's central bank has appointed a new head of its digital currency program, in a sign of the Gulf state's potential ambitions in the crypto space. This comes as the neighboring United Arab Emirates has emerged as a global hub for cryptocurrencies.
The new head of the Saudi program, Mohsen AlZahrani, is a former managing director at consultancy Accenture. He reports to Ziad Al Yousef, the Central Bank's deputy governor for development and technology. The team in Riyadh is engaging with some of the world's biggest crypto firms on future regulations.
Saudi Arabia has been pushing firms to increase their presence in Riyadh as part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's plans to turn the capital city into a global hub. This poses a direct challenge to the Gulf's business hub, Dubai. The kingdom is the largest economy in the Middle East, with a relatively affluent population, making it a key market for any firm operating in the region.
In 2018, Riyadh banned banks from processing transactions involving cryptocurrencies, though workarounds exist to trade. In recent months, local financial firms have reiterated the restrictions in correspondence with customers. Meantime, the Saudi government has been collaborating for several years with the UAE on a potential joint digital currency.
The emergence of the UAE as a leading player in the cryptocurrency space has created some urgency in Riyadh to draft more formal rules for the asset class. The appointment of AlZahrani is a sign of Saudi Arabia's potential ambitions in the crypto world.
The new head of the Saudi program, Mohsen AlZahrani, is a former managing director at consultancy Accenture. He reports to Ziad Al Yousef, the Central Bank's deputy governor for development and technology. The team in Riyadh is engaging with some of the world's biggest crypto firms on future regulations.
Saudi Arabia has been pushing firms to increase their presence in Riyadh as part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman's plans to turn the capital city into a global hub. This poses a direct challenge to the Gulf's business hub, Dubai. The kingdom is the largest economy in the Middle East, with a relatively affluent population, making it a key market for any firm operating in the region.In 2018, Riyadh banned banks from processing transactions involving cryptocurrencies, though workarounds exist to trade. In recent months, local financial firms have reiterated the restrictions in correspondence with customers. Meantime, the Saudi government has been collaborating for several years with the UAE on a potential joint digital currency.
The emergence of the UAE as a leading player in the cryptocurrency space has created some urgency in Riyadh to draft more formal rules for the asset class. The appointment of AlZahrani is a sign of Saudi Arabia's potential ambitions in the crypto world.