DUBAI (Reuters) – Saudi Telecom’s STC Pay business will be converted into a digital bank with paid-up capital of 2.5 billion riyals ($666.7 million) after Saudi Arabia’s cabinet approved licenses for two digital banks, it said on Wednesday.
The company will inject additional 802 million riyals to retain 85% of STC Pay’s share capital, with Western Union investing 750 million riyals for the remaining 15%.
A consortium led by Abdul Rahman bin Saad al-Rashed and Sons Company was also granted permission to establish a local digital bank with capital of 1.5 billion riyals.
Saudi Arabia’s central bank has licensed 16 Saudi fintech companies in recent months to provide payment services, microfinance and digital insurance brokerage.
In addition, there are 32 fintech companies operating under the regulatory sandbox environment designed for testing innovative services and products in the kingdom, a central bank statement said.
($1 = 3.7499 riyals)
(Reporting by Saeed Azhar; Editing by David Goodman)
