RIYADH, 5 October — A banking technology symposium and exhibition will be inaugurated by Dr. Mohammed Al-Jassir, vice governor of Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA), at the Institute of Banking (IOB) here on Monday.
More than 200 bankers and industry leaders besides delegates from various financial institutions are expected to attend.
Organized by Abana Enterprises Group, it will be the first event of its kind in Saudi Arabia. It seeks to evaluate future technological challenges facing the banking sector. Abdullah M. Jebreen, president of Abana, told Arab News yesterday that the symposium sought to "localize knowledge and banking technology besides introducing futuristic changes to the local market. This will also ensure smooth transition of the local banks and the Saudi financial institutions into the new era of banking technology".
The symposium is significant in view of the growth of the Kingdom’s banking sector which is evident from the fact that the consolidated balance of the country’s 10 Saudi commercial banks grew by six percent, exceeding SR440 billion last year.
Jebreen said the symposium will review regulatory provisions currently followed by the banks for streamlining their operations with special reference to new technology.
He said a three-day exhibition, on the sidelines of the symposium, will feature a wide range of banking machines and equipment, which have been packaged especially for the Saudi market. These include a number of automatic machines, utility and fine payment machines, currency exchange systems, reloading card, counting machines, authenticating machines and re-sorting machine. Also on display will be hard cash management systems, card payment terminals, wireless terminals and point-of-sale terminals.
