April 2021 marks a cornerstone of great achievements for Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030 program, which was officially launched five years ago this month.

April 1 will be the first official legal step for the Kingdom’s newest bank, Saudi National Bank (SNB), which was created from the merger of the National Commercial Bank (NCB) and the Samba Financial Group (Samba).

Last Sunday I was invited, along with a number of columnists and opinion leaders, to attend a phone press conference organized by Saudi Aramco, to share with us the financial results of the company’s fiscal year 2020.

Commercial concealment is a disturbing phenomenon for any government because it has a negative impact on the economy and overall business trading conditions. It is also detrimental to society, job creation and the national security of a country.

The advances in modern communications technology have been incredible, such as high-speed internet, text messaging, social networking sites, WhatsApp, and smartphones. However, where there are pioneers there are also criminals.

The Small and Medium Enterprises Bank aims to bridge the financing gap for the Kingdom’s small business owners and develop innovative new financing solutions for this critical sector.

The Kingdom’s new instant payment system (IPS) has been officially launched throughout the country by the Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) following successful trials by several banking organizations.

Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has announced the reform of four new laws to the Kingdom’s judicial institutions. The four laws are the Personal Status Law, the Civil Transactions Law, the Penal Code for Discretionary Sentences, and the Law of Evidence.

Money laundering is becoming a disturbing issue for the world economy and the global financial markets. The UN Office on Drugs and Crime estimates that $800 billion to $2 trillion is laundered each year, equal to around 2 to 5 percent of the global GDP.