Officials in Saudi Arabia have expressed worries about the speculative character of virtual assets, leading to a more cautious stance up to this point.
In an indication of the Gulf nation’s prospective interest in cryptocurrencies, Saudi Arabia’s banking regulator recently named Mohsen AlZahrani to head its virtual assets and central bank digital currency initiative.
Officials in Saudi Arabia have expressed worries about the speculative character of virtual assets, leading to a more cautious stance up to this point. However, Riyadh feels some pressure to develop more formal restrictions for the asset class in light of the United Arab Emirates’ rise as a major worldwide center for cryptocurrencies, according to sources familiar with the situation.
According to the persons, who requested anonymity because the information is confidential, AlZahrani, a former managing director at the consulting Accenture, reports to Ziad Al Yousef, the deputy governor for development and technology at the Central Bank. They claimed to be a part of a team in Riyadh that is discussing upcoming laws with some of the largest cryptocurrency companies in the world.
Requests for comment from SAMA representatives were not answered.
As part of Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s aspirations to transform the nation’s capital city into a worldwide center, Saudi Arabia has been pressuring companies to expand their presence in Riyadh. Dubai, the center of business for the Gulf, has been directly challenged by this.
With the largest economy in the Middle East and a generally wealthy populace, the kingdom is an important market for any company doing business in the area. The largest companies in the sector, such as Binance Holdings Ltd., have staffed up their Saudi teams because they believe the country would have a sizable untapped market if the existing limitations are relaxed.
Riyadh barred banks from conducting cryptocurrency transactions in 2018, yet there are still ways to trade. According to sources with knowledge of the situation, regional financial institutions have recently reinforced the limits in communication with clients.
Meanwhile, the Saudi and UAE governments have been working together on a potential shared digital currency for a number of years.
