Tagged: oman

May 25, 2026 @ 3:10 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Iran has initiated conversations with Oman regarding a potential collaborative arrangement to implement a payment mechanism for ships navigating the Strait of Hormuz, a vital chokepoint for global energy supplies. This development highlights ongoing tensions, as it suggests that Washington and Tehran remain far from… Read More

August 31, 2025 @ 5:37 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Bank Nizwa, Oman’s largest Islamic lender, has launched an electronic mandate (E-mandate) service for direct debit payments as part of its push to expand digital banking solutions, the bank said on Sunday. The service, which complies with the Central Bank of Oman’s regulatory framework, is… Read More

July 3, 2025 @ 9:29 pm By Michael Wong  |  

Oman Investment Authority (OIA) ended 2024 with $53 billion in assets under management and a net profit of $4.12 billion, enabling a $2.1 billion transfer to the state budget and reinforcing its fiscal importance, according to an announcement. Ranked among the top ten global sovereign… Read More

April 13, 2025 @ 3:37 pm By Michael Wong  |  

The National Bank of Oman (NBO) has launched a fully digital account opening feature on its mobile app, allowing users to open accounts without visiting a branch or submitting physical documents, as part of its broader shift toward mobile-first banking services. The app-based feature enables… Read More

January 30, 2025 @ 9:05 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Arab Financial Services (AFS), a provider of digital payment solutions and a fintech enabler across the MENA region, has announced its expansion into the United Arab Emirates. This  follows the acquisition of a Retail Payment Services License – Category II from the Central Bank of… Read More

June 2, 2024 @ 9:45 pm By Michael Wong  |  

QNB Group, the largest financial institution in the Middle East and Africa, and Ooredoo Fintech have announced a groundbreaking extension to their partnership aimed at revolutionizing fintech services in Oman. This collaboration marks a significant milestone in the region’s digital transformation journey as both entities… Read More

January 11, 2024 @ 10:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

In a significant move towards modernizing business-to-business (B2B) payment processes, PayMate India SPC, a B2B digital payments company, has signed a Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with the National Bank of Oman (NBO) in order “to digitize, automate, and streamline B2B payments using Visa Business Credit… Read More

December 22, 2023 @ 2:42 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Newgen Software, a global provider of low code digital transformation platform, announced that the Development Bank (DB) selected Newgen in order “to streamline its Banking Processes and Deliver Transformed Experiences.” The financing arm for the government to “support SMEs based in Oman is dedicated to… Read More

June 19, 2023 @ 11:24 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Mastercard (NYSE: MA) is partnering with Bankiom, a UAE-based lifestyle banking app, to introduce digital payment cards across the UAE, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, Kuwait, and Oman. This partnership marks “a significant stride in Mastercard‘s ongoing commitment to advancing digitalization in the payments landscape throughout the… Read More

January 12, 2023 @ 9:25 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

IFIN, which claims to be the first of its kind Islamic Fintech, announces its partnership with Bank Nizwa, Oman’s “first” full-fledged Islamic bank in the Sultanate, offering a plethora of Shariah-compliant products and services, “to introduce instant Islamic ‘Goods Financing’ with the aim of enriching… Read More

December 16, 2022 @ 7:37 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Celesta Capital, a deep technology venture capital firm, announced that it has created a formal partnership with The Sultanate of Oman’s Ministry of Transport, Communications and IT (MTCIT) and the Public Authority for Special Economic and Free Zones (OPAZ). Celesta Capital has “had a longstanding… Read More

July 2, 2022 @ 3:18 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Innoveo, a global tech firm and “pioneer” in no-code platform-as-a-service, announced that Oman Insurance company, one of the largest publicly listed insurers in the United Arab Emirates, has successfully gone live with its ZeroCode ‘KUDOS’ platform “leveraging Innoveo Skye, driving near-immediate efficiencies and enhancing the… Read More

July 31, 2021 @ 8:49 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Mumbai-based Fintech company QPS Global recently revealed that it will be expanding its business operations in the Middle East. The company confirmed that it will be allocating $10 million in capital into the region within the next 12 months. The B2B card issuance and processing… Read More

June 15, 2021 @ 10:02 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

IFIN (Islamic Finance Initiation Network), the Islamic Fintech firm, has introduced its operations in the Sultanate of Oman by teaming up with Alizz Islamic Bank and Danube Home. Bahrain-based IFIN, a company that digitally connects Islamic finance service providers to retail outlets, aims to offer… Read More

March 29, 2021 @ 11:12 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Fitch Ratings reports that the Islamic banking ecosystem in Oman is expected to continue growing during 2021-2022 after rather strong momentum last year. This, despite the COVID-19 outbreak and historically low oil prices, Fitch Ratings noted. Islamic financing in the MENA region country expanded by… Read More

March 24, 2021 @ 11:20 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Dr. Saeeda Jaffar, Board Member, Managing Director and Head of Middle East at Alvarez & Marsal, notes that research performed by Checkout.com at the end of last year suggested that digital commerce and the digital payment sectors in the Middle East region were “set for… Read More

May 1, 2020 @ 9:56 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), an intergovernmental political and economic union consisting of the Arab states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates, is expected to experience a significant increase in the use of Fintech platforms and services. The anticipated… Read More

March 27, 2020 @ 6:06 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

National Bank of Oman (NBO), one of the largest financial institutions in the country and its first local bank, aims to raise awareness regarding the importance of practicing safe banking during the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak. The NBO has taken several measures to ensure its clients… Read More

March 17, 2020 @ 11:36 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Oman’s Ministry of Technology and Communications (MTC) has committed to a memorandum of cooperation (MoC) with BankDhofar at the Sas Center for the 4th Industrial Revolution (4IR), in order to manage a technology innovation lab at the center. The MoC was reportedly signed by Dr…. Read More

March 15, 2020 @ 3:14 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Vinnie Lauria, an entrepreneur and venture capitalist who established Golden Gate Ventures, an early-stage VC company managing more than $250 million in assets, notes that his Singapore-based company has been watching emerging tech sectors across the Southeast Asia region. Lauria reveals that he’s seeing significant… Read More