The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) is doubling up its research into central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), but has not yet announced a deployment plan. On January 23rd, the bank of the Middle Eastern supernation announced that it has been experimenting with a project which “focuses on domestic wholesale CBDC use cases in collaboration with local banks and fintechs.”

SAMA stressed that “although no decision has been made regarding the introduction of CBDC in the Kingdom,” the nation’s central financial institution remains focused on exploring the potential benefits and risks of introducing CBDCs, and when/if introduced, local banks and payment companies will be heavily involved.

The factors considered in its research include market readiness, economic impact, privacy implications and the application cases of CBDCs. As part of the Saudi Vision 2030 initiative, the nation aims to diminish its dependency on oil as a source of income as well as strengthen its public service sectors.

Sources:

https://www.sama.gov.sa/en-US/News/Pages/news-812.aspx

https://cointelegraph.com/news/saudi-central-bank-still-researching-cbdc-but-no-decision-on-deployment

https://businesscloud.co.uk/news/in-crypto-uk-treasury-seeks-digital-pound-head-on-linkedin/