Arab Countries Issue Statements Regarding Troubled American Banks

Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Bahrain, and Jordan confirmed that their banks are not affected by the collapse of the American bank "Silicon Valley." The Governor of the Saudi Central Bank, Ayman Al-Sayari, stated, "There are no transactions between Saudi banks and the troubled American banks." He pointed out that "the Saudi Central Bank was one of the first to implement Basel III+ reforms related to global capital adequacy." He emphasized that "the capital adequacy ratio of Saudi banks is nearly 20%," noting that the central bank has recently activated complementary tools to provide liquidity in the banking sector, and that the liquidity coverage ratio is about 180%. Al-Sayari also mentioned yesterday that "100 licenses have been granted to fintech companies," indicating that the central bank has established a lab to study new technologies that could benefit the Saudi economy. Meanwhile, the World Bank's Vice President for the Middle East and North Africa, Farid Belhaj, ruled out any repercussions from the collapse of the American bank on Arab economies. He stated, "U.S. authorities rushed to contain the crisis." Additionally, the Jordanian Central Bank confirmed that there are no negative repercussions on the banking sector in the kingdom due to the financial situations of both Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. The Central Bank of Bahrain also affirmed the stability of the banking sector in the country, and that banks and licensed companies dealing in crypto and digital assets are not exposed to the recently troubled American banks. The Bahraini central bank stated, "The banking sector in the kingdom still enjoys liquidity and capital adequacy ratios higher than the regulatory required level."