Financial institutions in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) are fast catching up with the latest technologies in retail banking as pressure mounts from customers for better service delivery, according to ratings agency S&P Global.
“The adoption of big data, artificial intelligence analytics, as well as voice and facial recognition tools could enable a more effective and cost efficient provision of customer (banking) services,” S&P Global said in a new note.
It said a shake-up in banks' operations due to technology was much more likely to come from changing customer preferences than from regulatory pressures.
“Regulatory risk is low because policymakers are conscious of the extreme importance of local banking systems in the region and the need to keep them safe from potentially disruptive unregulated competition,” said Mohamed Damak, S&P Global Ratings credit analyst.
Even if customers' preferences continue to evolve, risks to banking systems remain low for at least next two years, said Mr Damak, adding, “This is because regulators continue to protect them (banks) and the share of current activity at risk is small.”
Some of the areas of banking most impacted by technological change include money transfer, foreign currency exchange and payment services.
Financial technology (FinTech) companies, which focus on lowering transfer fees and reducing transfer times, could significantly disrupt the money transfer operations of banks and exchange houses in the GCC, added S&P.
In 2017, expats in GCC nations sent over $119.3 billion (Dh429bn) back to their home countries, with India, Pakistan, Egypt and the Philippines the main destinations, according to World Bank figures.
The region's young and fast-growing population, who are more familiar with new technologies, are the main drivers for digital services in retail banking. About 40 per cent of the GCC population is under 30, which creates significant demand for digital financial operations, according to the Statistical Centre for the Cooperation Council for the Arab Countries of the Gulf.
“Some banks, such as Dubai-based Mashreqbank, have sought to capture this market by launching neobanks - 100 per cent digital banks - and we think more will follow,” noted S&P.
Online banking penetration also remains significant in the GCC. In Saudi Arabia, National Commercial Bank saw 36.6 per cent of financial transactions executed online or through its mobile application by the end of last year.
“Online banking penetration has reached 92 per cent in the UAE banks and 85 per cent in Saudi banks,” said S&P, citing McKinsey figures, adding that the shifting of transactions online from branches is “high on the agenda” of some banks.
In the UAE, the number of bank branches have been declining since December 2014, said S&P, suggesting that banks have managed to migrate some transactions to alternative channels. The UAE Banks' Federation's 2018 annual report published last week showed bank branch numbers in the country last year fell by 31 to 823.
Authorities and regulators in the GCC are also encouraging collaboration with FinTech companies, with many setting up 'sandbox' regimes allowing FinTechs to try out technologies within a flexible regulatory environment.
The UAE tops the list of countries with the highest number of FinTech start-ups in the region with 67, according to Bloomberg Intelligence, followed by Turkey at 44 and Jordan and Lebanon tying at 30.
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Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
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Killing of Qassem Suleimani
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Who are the Soroptimists?
The first Soroptimists club was founded in Oakland, California in 1921. The name comes from the Latin word soror which means sister, combined with optima, meaning the best.
The organisation said its name is best interpreted as ‘the best for women’.
Since then the group has grown exponentially around the world and is officially affiliated with the United Nations. The organisation also counts Queen Mathilde of Belgium among its ranks.
Six large-scale objects on show
- Concrete wall and windows from the now demolished Robin Hood Gardens housing estate in Poplar
- The 17th Century Agra Colonnade, from the bathhouse of the fort of Agra in India
- A stagecloth for The Ballet Russes that is 10m high – the largest Picasso in the world
- Frank Lloyd Wright’s 1930s Kaufmann Office
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Global state-owned investor ranking by size
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United States
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China
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UAE
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Japan
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Norway
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Canada
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Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Tips to stay safe during hot weather
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- Recognise heat illness: Learn the signs of heat exhaustion and heat stroke (dizziness, confusion, rapid pulse, nausea), and seek medical attention if symptoms occur.
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
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