Fsdp Quarterly Newsletter Q1 2023 · Page 5

 
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Financial Sector Development Highlights 
The Total Number of Fintech Companies Licensed by 
the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) Reached 6 Companies 
that were Licensed in the First Quarter of 2023. 
The total number of financial technology companies 
licensed by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) in the first 
quarter of 2023 reached 6 companies, this comes as part 
of SAMA's role to promote the development of the 
financial technology sector to ensure ultimate stability 
and growth of the sector, and a step to contribute to the 
sector growth while complying with SAMA's regulatory 
requirements in line with SAMA's mandate to enhance 
overall 
financial 
stability 
and 
support 
greater 
opportunities of Saudi Vision 2030,  The companies as 
following: 
• 
Fintech in debt-based crowdfunding: 
o 
Forus 
o 
Tameed 
o 
Raqamyah 
• 
Fintech in consumer microfinance: 
o 
Fuel Finance Company 
• 
Fintech in finance debt collection: 
o 
Mani 
• 
Fintech in finance aggregation services: 
o 
Creative Future for Digital Brokerage 
SAMA Permits a Buy Now, Pay Later Company 
The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) granted "MIS Forward" a 
permit to carry out Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) solution 
pursuant to Saudi Central Bank law and Finance 
Companies Control law for providing finance to customers 
wishing to purchase products and services from 
merchants without incurring term financing cost. 
This initiative is aimed at enticing a new segment of 
investors and companies that can bring added value to 
the 
sector 
for 
more 
efficient 
operation, 
while 
maintaining full adherence to the regulatory and 
supervisory guidelines defined by SAMA. 
Saudi Central Bank Releases Update to Unified 
Compulsory Motor Insurance Policy 
The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) has announced updating 
the Unified Compulsory Motor Insurance Policy. This 
comes based on the authority vested in SAMA according 
to the Insurance Control Law as well as in line with its 
continuous efforts to develop the insurance sector and to 
protect the rights of the insureds and the beneficiaries of 
the insurance coverage. 
These amendments also include the policy definitions and 
its 
appendixes 
in 
accordance 
to 
the 
on-going 
developments of the Insurance Industry, as well as 
updating the exceptions and transferring some of the 
right of recovery cases. The amendments also allow for 
an option where the third party is entitled to choose 
between a direct cash compensation, or to get the 
damaged vehicle repaired. 
Saudi Central Bank Launches Open Banking Lab 
The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) announced the launch of 
the Open Banking Lab according to the Open Banking 
Framework issued by SAMA November 2022. 
The Open Banking Lab aims to enable innovation and 
accelerate the development of open banking services in 
the Kingdom as it serves as one of the most important 
technical enablers of the open banking ecosystem in the 
Kingdom. The lab will provide banks and fintechs with a
technical testing environment to enable them to develop, 
test, and certify their open banking services to ensure 
compatibility with the Open Banking Framework. 
Open banking services is a new concept in the financial 
industry that aims to enable the consumers of financial 
institutions to securely share their financial data with a 
third-party provider, which in turn provide new and 
innovative financial services and products for consumers.
SAMA Reduces Minimum Paid-Up Capital Required for
Finance Companies to Carry-on Fina