The Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) has suggested that Open Banking across Arab countries will reach an annual 25% growth rate over the next five years if its latest guidelines are followed.
This was explained in AMF’s latest report titled ‘Guidelines for an Effective Open Banking/ Finance Adoption’ produced by Open Banking firm Fintech Galaxy and members of the Arab Regional Fintech Working Group (WG) in collaboration with 10 Arab Central Banks.
The paper highlights key developments and challenges in finance and Open Banking adoption in Jordan, the UAE, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, Palestine, Kuwait, Egypt, and Morocco – as part of AMF’s efforts to provide Central Banks with guidelines on how to accommodate an effective Open Banking framework.
According to the Fund, such a framework must take into account various aspects that include the definition of Open Banking, types of participants, the scope of data required to be shared, how this data can be accessed, security considerations, involvement of third party providers, government support, as well as the standardisation of APIs.
In order to extract knowledge on all of these factors, the report draws the conclusion that Open Banking regulations should be made as a result of lengthy dialogue with stakeholders by looking at different global use cases.
Mirna Sleiman, Founder and CEO of Fintech Galaxy, said: “Prepared in partnership with Fintech Galaxy and Central Banks from various Arab countries, this guideline offers a roadmap that everyone can learn from and grow with as it simplifies complex concepts and helps fast-track Open Banking adoption across the region.
“The collaborative approach aims to share best practices, present new opportunities and create value to all parties.”
Further endorsed by AMF’s Director General Chairman Dr Abdulrahman Al-Hamidy as a source of valuable insights, the step-by-step guide also noted that Open Banking regulations should be drafted according to the conditions available in each country, such as its existing financial digital infrastructure and level of progress.
