Islamic Finance in Saudi Arabia: Leading the Way to Vision 2030

The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Islamic Finance Country Report is the first comprehensive study of the Islamic finance sector in the Kingdom. Under the theme “Islamic Finance in Saudi Arabia: Leading the Way to Vision 2030”, the report analyses the outlook, trends, and prospects of Islamic finance in the Kingdom.

Islamic finance assets in Saudi Arabia reached a remarkable USD 879.2 billion (SAR 3,297 billion) by the end of 2018, according to the report, making the Kingdom the largest Islamic finance market globally in economies with dual financial systems comprising both conventional and Islamic financial sectors. The report further highlights the Kingdom’s actions in the area of digital transformation, evidenced by the formation of “Fintech Saudi” to act as a catalyst to develop the Fintech ecosystem alongside the vibrant regulatory sandbox set out by the Kingdom’s monetary authority.

Given the Kingdom’s immense potentials and its unique comparative advantages, Saudi Arabia could become a global leader in the Islamic financial services industry particularly by capitalizing on its distinctiveness in two areas:

• Awqāf: As a spiritual destination for Muslims worldwide, the Kingdom offers favorable incentives and can benefit from sizeable opportunities in terms of investment and spending. Awqāf can be an ideal channel for investment as awqāf require sustainable income generation.
• Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs): Mobilizing resources for the SMEs through ṣukūk, equity, crowdfunding, venture capital, inter alia, would provide Islamic finance industry an edge in innovation, diversity and economic impact. Since SMEs are the engine of job creation, investing in the SMEs sector is essential for sustainable economic growth.

Read more about the report here:  IRTI Unveils New Report on the Potential of Islamic Finance in Saudi Arabia.