New Bank Accounts Online in Saudi halted

Every bank in Saudi Arabia will halt opening new accounts to clients via platforms online “until further notice” as per the latest instructions issued by SAMA. Saudi Central Bank (SAMA), Saudi Gazette learned from reliable sources.

The new rules that take effect from Sunday, April 10th will allow opening accounts for both institutions and individuals as part of the new measures to stop fraud.

SAMA advised financial institutions and banks that accounts opening for new customers should be done through branches. This lets bank staff confirm their identity with the individual opening the account.

New Bank Accounts Online in Saudi halted

In accordance with the new rules that apply to non-Saudi customers, they will no ever be able to add beneficiaries to money transfers on the internet. Instead, they must complete the process in person. The new regulations also contain limit the amounts of cash that are transferable online up to an amount of SR60,000. The time of transfer for domestic wires is two hours, whereas it’s 24-hours for wires from international countries.

SAMA demanded banks operating within the Kingdom to take certain security measures to safeguard customers from fraud in the financial sector. This is in line with the Saudi Central Bank Law that seeks to improve the stability of the banking industry and increase customer confidence.