Two SR4 billion digital banks licensed in Saudi Arabia

 

Two SR4 billion digital banks licensed in Saudi Arabia

Riyadh city skyline at night. Image Credit: Shutterstock

Dubai: Saudi Arabia’s Cabinet on Tuesday approved licensing two digital banks in the Kingdom, with a capital of SR4 billion, the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) announced on Wednesday.

Minister of Finance Mohammed Al Jadaan, chairman of the Financial Sector Development Program, and Dr. Fahad Abdullah Al Mubarak, governor of the Saudi Central Bank, expressed gratitude and appreciation to King Salman bin Abdul Aziz and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for the Cabinet's approval to licence two local digital banks.

First, STC Pay will be converted into a local digital bank, with a capital of SR2.5 billion (STC bank). Second, a number of companies and investors, led by Abdul Rahman Bin Saad Al-Rashed and Sons Company, will establish a local digital bank to conduct banking business in the Kingdom, with a capital of SR1.5 billion (Saudi Digital Bank).

Al Jadaan said that the Cabinet's approval reflects the leadership's keenness to keep pace with the rapid development in the FinTech sector and to empower the Kingdom to be among the largest financial hubs in the world.

He added that the Financial Sector Development Program, one of the Kingdom's Vision 2030 realization programs, seeks to keep pace with global developments in the financial services and FinTech during 2021-2025 to underpin economic diversification.

On his part, the SAMA governor clarified that with the approval of the Council of Ministers, the Saudi Central Bank will recommence its work to finalize technical and operational requirements for the two banks to start their banking activities in the Kingdom.

The governor drew attention to the fact that digital banks are subject to supervision and controls applied currently to commercial banks operating in the Kingdom, with an increased focus on aspects of technology, cyber security, anti-money laundering, tracking terrorist financing as well as operational risks.

Al Mubarak pointed out that digital banks provide services and products exclusively through electronic channels by adopting an innovative and sustainable banking business model to enhance the financial inclusion and keep pace with cutting edge technological developments in the financial sector.

It is worth mentioning that the Saudi Central Bank has been actively engaged in supporting innovation and maintaining confidence in the financial sector by developing the digital economy and enabling FinTech companies to support the growth of the private sector.

In this context, the Central Bank has licensed 16 Saudi FinTech companies in the recent past to provide payment services, consumer micro-finance and digital insurance brokerage.

In addition, there are 32 FinTech companies operating under the Regulatory Sandbox environment, which was designed for testing innovative services and products in the Kingdom.

In an effort to broaden the scope and efficiency of innovative services through the best regulatory standards, the Central Bank has issued last year the "Open Banking Policy," which will allow bank clients to manage their bank accounts and share data securely.

Clients will be given the option to allow third party service providers, including banks and FinTech companies, to access their banking information.

To sum up, the Saudi Central Bank has been working relentlessly for developing and supporting innovation in the banking sector in partnership with FinTech companies to reap the benefits of the technological revolution for the financial sector and the economy at large.

Regulating digital transformation in Saudi Arabia

 

Regulating digital transformation in Saudi Arabia

Like elsewhere around the world, Saudi Arabia is witnessing a digital transformation.

Not very long ago, the digital transformation was limited to the world of business and security. But now we are experiencing a sea change in the way we lead our lives. It would not be wrong to say that now several aspects of our personal lives heavily rely on different apps.

Digital transformation is also a key goal of the Vision 2030 reform plan. Since the announcement of the 2030 road map for the Kingdom, we have witnessed huge changes in the way we used to deal with financial institutions and government entities.

Initially, many of us felt uneasy but now we are becoming used to the ease that comes with this digital transformation, as we no longer have to wait in long queues to get trivial matters sorted out at the bank or a government institution. Most of the services are just a click away or can be done through an app.

Due to the rapidly changing situation, it is necessary to regulate all matters related to digitization and digitalization processes. Therefore, the Kingdom launched the Digital Government Authority (DGA) to serve as an umbrella organization for all digital matters in Saudi Arabia.

In today’s article, we shall highlight the scope and powers of the authority.

First of all, it is important to get acquainted with the definition of digitization, as knowing the basic concepts from the regulator’s point of view will certainly correct our understanding of all relevant terms and determine their actual purpose.

We will start with the most popular term, which is digital transformation. It means transforming and developing business models strategically to become digital models based on data, technology, and communication networks. Hence the role of digital government in supporting administrative, organizational, and operational processes within and between government entities to achieve digital transformation, develop, improve and enable easy and effective access to government information and services.

All of the above is supposed to be carried out in accordance with specific criteria, meaning a set of rules and controls regulating the operations and tasks related to digital governance approved by this newly formed authority.

Another interesting term is the government digital market platform, which means a platform that enables government agencies to purchase and provide services and technical assets — such as software, hardware, communications services, managed services, and cloud services — and the completion of purchases, payments, and receipts through the electronic portal for government competitions and procurement.

Some time ago, a unified national portal was launched, which provides all government digital services from various sectors through a unified portal and application or through a unified service center.

To provide safety of use, we have the new Digital Trust Services, which refers to any electronic service that aims to verify the validity and integrity of electronic transactions and the identity of customers, including digital signatures, digital seals, and time stamps.

The DGA is the competent authority in everything related to digital government.

To ensure the achievement of digital government goals and sustainability of its business, this new authority is responsible for issuing indicators, tools, and reports to measure the performance and capabilities of government agencies in the field of digital governance.

Buying And Selling Remote Amazon FBA Businesses

 

Buying And Selling Remote Amazon FBA Businesses

Jason Kwan is the Chairman and President of Pearl West Group, a successful Amazon mergers and acquisitions (M&A) firm that has recently made some significant acquisitions and grew exponentially. I recently had the pleasure to sit down and talk with Kwan about his history as an entrepreneur, how he came to be successful, and what he finds to be the upcoming trends of M&A for smaller online businesses currently running remotely. 

Jason Kwan is the Chairman and President of Pearl West Group.

Like many successful people before him, Kwan took a massive risk: "My entry into entrepreneurship was very fortunate. I started reading books about financial freedom, and then it slowly led to books about starting a business. I decided to skip university to pursue this route. My mom was very upset about it because she wanted the best for me, and she thought that going to university would have a higher chance of me becoming successful. She also wasn't rigid about it because she had some faith in me. And I could always go back to school if I fail."

With nothing but a dream and a little money in savings, Kwan quickly dove headfirst into the field of entrepreneurship. "I started my first business at 17 years old. I was devouring a ton of courses on online marketing and how to use Google Adwords. I formed a digital advertising agency." Kwan quickly realized the benefits of running an online business like this that can generate income and was more or less passive. The lightbulb moment occurred when he went to a family member's wedding and realized he was earning money with his business running in the background. 

However, the biggest test in Kwan's growth came when he learned of the power of M&As. Still working within his original digital marketing business, he had experienced a 160% compounded annual growth rate for eight years. "I never had the thought of selling the business because I didn't think anyone would buy it. The agency was centered around me, and I didn't know how it would function with me, but if I knew what I know now, I would have built the proper systems and hired the right talent so that it could have been sellable." Eventually, Kwan shifted his focus over to running an Amazon FBA (fulfilled by Amazon) mergers and acquisitions firm.

It didn't take long for Kwan to realize the power of running a business like this. After opening its doors, Pearl West Group has focused on finding the right deals and brands where it’s a win-win for both sides. "Each deal is different, but we typically offer anywhere from 70% to 95% of the cash upfront with the rest over a 1–2-year period. We usually go for a 100% acquisition."

As Kwan states, "We're focused on buying up brands that have the majority of their sales coming from Amazon. But we're agnostic to the category of products we're looking for. We look at almost any category on Amazon, from health supplements, beddings, pet supplies to kitchen household items." 

Kwan is also very transparent in the processes and steps that he goes through when deciding which businesses to purchase: "we evaluate them based on the sustainability of the earnings. 

We want to know if the business earnings will be just as good in 12 months. When we make an offer, there's always an earn-out component in the offer because we want the seller to benefit from the upside as well." Therefore, as an investor trying to do something similar, you might want to take Kwan's advice and consider whether your investment will continue to produce the same income after acquisition and how you can align the incentives for growth. 

In Pearl West Group's experience, now is a great time to purchase a remote business and focus on improving the quality of and profit of the company. "The pandemic has shifted more consumer behavior towards online shopping, and we've been able to see positive effects from that." Indeed, the growth rate of Pearl West Group has exploded since the pandemic started. 

When asked about the benefits of running a remote team, Kwan was clear that this has not phased his operations much. "Working remotely wasn't a massive issue for us because more than half of our team is located overseas, so we're experienced with virtual meetings. We miss the energy that happens in person among our local team, though - we're looking forward to spending time at the office again once everyone is more comfortable." It seems that in today's day and age, the benefits of operating a business with a remote team are starting to have way more benefits than drawbacks. 

It seems that the future for companies such as Pearl West Group will include more remote workers, virtual meetings, and so on. Especially for businesses that want to attract some of the best candidates from all corners of the globe. Pearl West Group has been embracing this change and not letting it halt its vision for the future. 

"Our short goal is to establish ourselves as a top seller on Amazon, through investments in creating internal brands, and acquiring other quality brands to add to our portfolio. Our long-term vision for the company is to build a global digitally native consumer brands corporation. We want to be 1 of the top 10 sellers on Amazon, with hundreds of brands within our portfolio, great brand exposure through other DTC channels, and, more importantly, have a lot of fun doing it." 

With all of these visions of success coming in the future for Pearl West Group, it seems that keeping passion and having an interest in what you are doing is one of the top recipes towards their success. That and keeping a pragmatic stance along the way: "We want to scale and grow aggressively, but only if it makes sense. We're patient."

Why Exceptional SEO is Crucial For a Successful Business

 

Why Exceptional SEO is Crucial For a Successful Business

For many companies, success entails a strong digital presence. Oftentimes, this means having a high Search Engine Optimization (SEO) ranking.

To achieve top rankings on the different search engines, businesses must optimize their website SEO by adopting practices that fulfill the search engine's ranking criteria. Ranking factors like website security, page loading speed, creating high-quality content, earning backlinks and enhancing web accessibility are only a few of the ways one can boost their rankings in search results.

Here are three ways making the most of SEO also means making the most of your business.

Content matters to the success of the business and to the search engine.

Content is the most significant component of a website. It equips businesses with the power to engage website visitors by helping them with their journey, starting from when they first land on the website until they make their purchase.

Engaging content allows businesses to share their brand stories and values with their audience. Companies can describe their products and services in an engaging and straightforward manner that accommodates their potential buyers' curiosity. Doing so kills two birds with one stone: It enhances a potential buyer's experience and increases their chances of making a purchase while complying with the search engine's ranking factor.

John Meuller, a senior webmaster trend analyst at Google, has repeatedly emphasized the importance of the content for Google as a ranking factor. According to Google's Quality Raters Guidelines, a page should be factually accurate, clearly written and comprehensive in order to be high quality.

Related: 5 Ways to Optimize Your Content for Better Google Rankings

Credibility and trust can catapult a business beyond the target audience.

No matter the size of a business, public relations (PR) is a practice that plays a significant role in raising a business's profile. It helps establish business credibility, gives exposure and enhances its reputation. PR can bring a good reputation far beyond a business's targeted audience and to the search engines through backlinks.

A backlink is a hyperlink of a webpage mentioned on another website's content. Search engine crawlers crawl the internet to discover backlinks of a website when determining its ranking. Backlinks indicate to the search engines that the website content is credible and worthy enough to have earned a link from another authoritative website. Businesses can earn backlinks by sharing their stories or expertise with journalists, influencers or by guest blogging. The stories or blog posts are then published with the hyperlink back to the business's website.

The useful blog posts also pave the way for people to share the post URL on their websites for their audiences resulting in referral traffic and a backlink. In short, the more backlinks from authoritative websites, the higher the authority of your content.

Related: How to Know if an Online Marketing Expert is Actually Credible

A successful business website is like a successful workplace.

A website is a digital extension of the business and requires the same standards as an office to add value to existing clients and attract new ones. Successful businesses often go the extra mile with spectacular offices, high-tech board rooms and advanced security systems. Companies should also prioritize user-friendly, well-structured, easy-to-navigate, accessible, secure and fast-loading websites to achieve a high ranking.

SEO is not an independent component of a business's marketing strategy. Instead, good SEO practices are intertwined with a business's core goals and objectives. When a business and its search engine practices are aligned, they achieve the common goal of giving value to its audience.

Related: Five Reasons Why Your Business Must Have Its Own Website

Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market 2020-2026

 

Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market 2020-2026 

The "Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market (2020-2026): Market Forecast by Type (Passenger Vehicle, Commercial Vehicle),?by Service Type (Spot Rental, Limo Service, Operating Lease), by Booking Type (Online, Offline), by Regions, and Competitive Landscape" report has been added to openbazzars.com offering.

According to this research, the Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market is projected to grow at a CAGR of 7.5% during 2020-2026.

Saudi Arabia vehicle rental market is expected to witness growth, primarily backed by the rapidly growing investments in the tourism sector, robust development of the logistics sector, as well as the rising preference of corporate players towards leasing of cars.

Furthermore, the government's initiatives for the diversification of the economy away from oil, led by Saudi's Vision 2030, would lead to the establishment of several new commercial entities in the country, thereby propelling the demand for transportation services over the coming years. This, in turn, would also augment the revenues of the vehicle rental market in Saudi Arabia.

By type, the passenger vehicle segment dominated the market revenue share in 2019 and is expected to witness significant growth, on account of the surge in investments in the tourism sector. The rapidly growing internet penetration in the kingdom along with the growing inclination of customers, especially young users, to make travel bookings through online and mobile platforms, would bolster the market for online vehicle rental bookings during the forecast period. The airport and seaport expansion projects in the kingdom to strengthen the logistics industry would further drive the demand for commercial rental vehicles over the coming years.

Impact of COVID-19

The coronavirus pandemic and oil price crash is expected to significantly impact the vehicle rental market in 2020 on account of reduced mobility, temporary suspension of tourism and commercial activities, as well as reduced spending capacity of people. However, the resumption of tourism and commercial activities, combined with an increase in potential consumer base on account of the anticipated reduction in sales of new cars due to the imposition of 15% VAT from July 2020 and the projected shift of users of public transport to other means for commuting due to hygiene concerns, would help the vehicle rental market to gradually recover in the kingdom over the coming years.

The central region acquired the majority revenue share in the overall vehicle rental market in 2019, owing to the high density of the working population and infrastructural developments in the region. Growing tourism in the western region of the kingdom, on the back of new hospitality and tourism projects such as red sea development and the introduction of e-visas for tourists from 49 countries for reasons other than religious and medical tourism in 2019, would propel the market for vehicle rental services in the western region of Saudi Arabia during the forecast period.

The Saudi Arabia vehicle rental market is expected to register significant growth in the coming timeframe as a result of an increase in the medical and vocational tourism in the country. The country has the best in class and state of art medical facilities and welcomes a large footfall with context to medical tourism and is anticipated to positively impact the growth of the vehicle rental market.

Also, the months of June and July are the profit-making months for the vehicle rental market, as these are the months of Hajj in Makkah and Medina in the country and attract a large number of Muslim pilgrimage tourism each year. These tourist visits lead to high demand for the rented vehicles to witness the beauty of the country and as a result, is a boom period for the rented vehicles. Hence, for all the potential industrialists, increased tourism in the country is a positive growth contributing factor.

Study Coverage

The report thoroughly covers the market by type, service type, booking type, and regions. The report provides an unbiased and detailed analysis of the market trends, opportunities high growth areas, market drivers which would help the stakeholders to device and align their market strategies according to the current and future market dynamics.

Key Topics Covered

1. Executive Summary

2. Introduction

2.1 Report Description

2.2 Key Highlights of The Report

2.3 Market Scope & Segmentation

2.4 Research Methodology

2.5 Assumptions

3. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Overview

3.1 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Revenues, 2015-2023F

3.2 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Revenue Share, By Type, 2019 & 2023F

3.3 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Revenue Share, By Service Type, 2019 & 2023F

3.4 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Revenue Share, By Booking Type, 2019 & 2023F

3.5 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Revenue Share, By Regions, 2019 & 2023F

3.6 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Industry Life Cycle, 2019

3.7 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Porter's Five Forces, 2019

4. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Dynamics

4.1 Impact Analysis

4.2 Market Drivers

4.3 Market Restraints

5. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Trends

6. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market: TAM Analysis

7. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Overview, By Passenger Vehicle

7.1 Saudi Arabia Passenger Vehicle Rental Market Revenues, 2015-2023F

7.2 Saudi Arabia Passenger Vehicle Rental Market Revenue Share, By Service Type, 2019 & 2023F

7.3 Saudi Arabia Spot Passenger Vehicle Rental Market Overview

7.4 Saudi Arabia Operating Lease Passenger Vehicle Rental Market Overview

7.5 Saudi Arabia Limo Passenger Vehicle Rental Market Overview

8. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Overview, By Commercial Vehicle

8.1 Saudi Arabia Commercial Vehicle Rental Market Revenues, 2015-2023F

8.2 Saudi Arabia Commercial Vehicle Rental Market Revenues Share, By Type, 2019 & 2023F

8.3 Saudi Arabia Bus Rental Market Overview

8.4 Saudi Arabia Truck Rental Market Overview

8.5 Saudi Arabia Other Commercial Vehicle Rental Market Overview

9. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Overview, By Service Type

9.1 Saudi Arabia Spot Rental Market Overview

9.2 Saudi Arabia Operating Lease Market Overview

9.3 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Revenues, By Limo Service, 2015-2023F

10. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Overview, By Booking Type

10.1 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Revenues, By Online Booking Type, 2015-2023F

10.2 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Revenues, By Offline Booking Type, 2015-2023F

11. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Overview, By Regions

11.1 Saudi Arabia Central Region Vehicle Rental Market Overview

11.2 Saudi Arabia Southern Region Vehicle Rental Market Overview

11.3 Saudi Arabia Eastern Region Vehicle Rental Market Overview

11.4 Saudi Arabia Western Region Vehicle Rental Market Overview

12. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Overview, By Fleet Size

12.1 Saudi Arabia Regional Vehicle Rental Fleet Share, By Service Type

12.2 Saudi Arabia Regional Vehicle Rental Fleet Size, By Service Type

13. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Key Performance Indicators

13.1 Saudi Arabia Logistics Sector Overview

13.2 Saudi Arabia Tourism and Hospitality Sector Overview

13.3 Saudi Arabia Commercial Sector Overview

14. Saudi Arabia Government Regulations In Vehicle Rental Market

15. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Opportunity Assessment

15.1 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Opportunity Assessment, By Type

15.2 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Opportunity Assessment, By Service Type

15.3 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Opportunity Assessment, By Booking Type

15.4 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Opportunity Assessment, By Regions

16. Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Competitive Landscape

16.1 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Competitive Benchmarking, By Service Type

16.2 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Competitive Benchmarking, By Ownership Type

16.3 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Competitive Benchmarking, By Insurance Type

16.4 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Revenue Share, By Operating Parameters

16.5 Saudi Arabia Vehicle Rental Market Revenue Share, By Brands, 2019

17. List of Key Players In Vehicle Rental Business

18. Company Profiles

18.1 Theeb Rent a Car

18.2 Hanco (Al Tala's International Transportation Co. Limited)

18.3 Best Rent a Car

18.4 Seera Group

18.5 Arabian Hala Company (Avis Car Rental)

18.6 Al-Jazira Equipment Company (Sixt)

18.7 Al Jomaih Auto Rental (Ajar) (Enterprise Rent a Car)

18.8 Al Wasilah Rent a Car Co Ltd (The Hertz Corporation)

18.9 United International Transportation Company (Budget Rent a Car)

18.10 Samara-Sixt KSA

18.11 Al Wefaq Rent a Car

19. Key Strategic Recommendations

All companies jobs also available in ksa

For more information about this report visit

This Week's New Classifieds on Administrative Jobs, Education Positions, Temp Jobs & More

 Below are BroadwayWorld's latest Classifieds listings as of 4/8/2021. Catch up below on anything that you might have missed and to visit the full section to post FREE classifieds, read ads and more, click here!

Posting listings in the Classifieds Section is totally FREE for basic listings, and our listings now include career help including accounting, taxes, designers, help wanted featuring full time jobs, internships, part-time jobs and temp work. For instruction and classes, we have listings on acting, dance, voice and voice-over lessons and coaching, as well as listings of accompanists, music production, arrangers & more.

Featured Listings This Week New Listings This Week

Full Time Jobs - Administrative: Communications DirectorJob Title: Communications Director Classification: Full Time jobs Reports to: President & CEO Supervises: Communications Associate, Consultants Salary: $70-80k dependent upon experience; 100% employer paid health insurance Location: Flexible; if remote, travel to NYC will be required from time to time and covered by a travel allowance. If NYC-based, we would expect hybrid office-home working. Summary: New Music USA is seeking an exceptional Communications Director who will join ... (more)

Full Time Jobs in Saudi Arabia - Creative: Instructor of Theatre Non-Tenure-TrackFull-time Instructor of Theatre, Non-Tenure-Track COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON is accepting applications for nine-month, renewable, non-tenure track appointment in the Department of Theatre and Dance, contract beginning August 16, 2021. The Department of Theatre and Dance is NAST accredited, offering BA and MAT degrees in Theatre and a BA in Dance. Seeking a theatre generalist to teach introductory classes to majors and non-majors. Secondary areas of expertise are open, but may include Stage Mana... (more)

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