Retail Electronic retail payments rise to 70% in Saudi Arabia By Andrew Hammond April 4, 2024, 2:37 PM Leonid Iastremskyi/Alamy via Reuters Electronic payments are rising as about 90% of Saudi consumers now shop via e-commerce and 14% spend money online at least once a day Electronic payments up from 62% E-commerce to exceed $13.2bn by 2025 About 90% of Saudis now shop online The Saudi central bank said this week that the share of electronic payments in the retail sector rose to 70 percent in 2023 from 62 percent the year before, as the government tries to boost online banking and the fintech sector. A total 10.8 billion transactions were processed in 2023 compared to 8.7 billion transactions in 2022, the Saudi Press Agency reported, citing the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency. The e-commerce sector is expected to exceed $13.2 billion by 2025 after a 60 percent surge in online shopping in 2019-20. NewsletterGet the Best of AGBI delivered straight to your inbox every week Checkout.com says 91 percent of Saudi consumers now shop via e-commerce and 14 percent spend money online at least once a day. Amazon Saudi doubled its storage capacity in 2023 with the launch of a 2.7 million cubic foot fulfilment centre in Riyadh that can house more than 9 million products. The Saudi e-commerce surge is transforming logistics Gulf retailers are missing a digital trick Saudi Arabia backs tech startup sector with $888m The central bank says the number of fintech businesses has risen from 51 in 2021, to 89 in 2022, to more than 200 in August 2023. The bank’s 2022 fintech report said total revenue generated by fintechs in 2022 was SR2.8 billion (over $746 million), up from SR2 billion in 2021. Foodics, the cloud-based restaurant management and payment business, is set to be the first Saudi fintech to list on the Saudi stock exchange in an IPO planned for this year. The government has offered $888 million in support for the tech startups and venture capital covering digital payments, e-gaming and artificial intelligence.
Renewable Energy UAE plans $6bn solar energy storage plant The UAE will construct a renewable facility capable of providing energy at scale around the clock. The project – estimated to cost $6 billion – will be developed in partnership between the UAE state-owned renewables company Masdar and the Emirates Water and Electricity Company (Ewec). The new facility will include solar power with the potential […] 2 hours ago
Economy Slow restart predicted for GCC aid to Lebanon A resumption of badly needed GCC financial aid to Lebanon may take time, even though most Gulf countries have given their blessing to the new Lebanese president Joseph Aoun, according to observers. The six nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council were previously among the biggest aid donors and investors in Lebanon, before they cut assistance as […] 22 mins ago
Mining Saudi Arabia grants exploratory rights to six mining sites The Saudi Ministry of Industry and Mineral Resources has allocated mineral exploration rights for six mining sites with a combined size of 890 sq km, according to the Saudi Press Agency. On Tuesday, the ministry announced that mining company Amak has been granted three exploratory concessions in Jabal al Khallah North (98 sq km) and […] 6 mins ago
Banking & Finance Iraq hires EY to explore restructuring of state banks Iraq is considering merging its two largest state banks as part of a restructuring plan prompted by a sharp erosion of their assets over recent years because of accumulating non-performing loans, local media has reported. London-based auditing firm Ernst & Young (EY) is conducting a study on the restructuring of the Rafidain and Rasheed banks […] 3 mins ago
