Batelco Becomes the First Telecom Company in the GCC to Receive Licenses for Open Banking

Batelco Becomes the First Telecom Company in the GCC to Receive Licenses for Open Banking

The company obtained the necessary licenses from the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) to provide both consumers and SMEs with services such as digital wallet creation, cards issuance services, bank accounts aggregation and bank account payments initiation on behalf of clients and third parties. His Excellency, Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) Governor Mr. Rasheed Mohammed Al-Maraj , commented: "We would like to congratulate Batelco on obtaining their Open Banking services license and entering the field of fintech. This step is part of Bahrain's ongoing growth in sectors that directly benefits customers and is in line with the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) strategy to support a local environment that encourages innovation in financial services as per global banking industry trends. "We are pleased to witness such cooperation between two vital fields in Bahrain, the financial services sector and the telecommunications sector, which plays a role towards achieving the Kingdom's Economic Vision 2030." Batelco Chairman, Shaikh Abdulla bin Khalifa Al Khalifa , said: "One of our strategies at Batelco is to invest in digital solutions and services beyond our core telecommunications business. Global companies are exploring various fields, such as the Internet of Things, artificial intelligence and fintech, and by diversifying