Banking and Finance

Protesters clash with Turkish riot police using tear gas and water cannon during a demonstration following the arrest of the mayor of Istanbul in Ankara, on March 22, 2025.

Imamoglu's arrest triggers emergency market measures as Turkey stocks plunge

The Turkish lira and equities have fallen sharply since the arrest last week of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu — a key rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan — on corruption charges, which he denies.

Participants arrive to attend the annual Future Investment Initiative (FII) conference in Riyadh on Oct. 29, 2024.

UAE, Egypt, Saudi Arabia finance startups lead Forbes Middle East Fintech50

Some 119 fintech startups across the Middle East and North Africa raised $700 million in 2024, accounting for 30% of the total MENA startup funding for last year.

UAE President Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan walks with President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva of Brazil, on an official visit to the United Arab Emirates, April 15, 2023.

Analysis

A year on, UAE walks BRICS tightrope amid escalating US-Brazil rhetoric

Trump is likely to go head-to-head with BRICS this year. He has declared the group to be "dead" and threatened to impose 100% tariffs on all imports from the member states if they planned to move against the dollar.

Jennifer Gnana

By Jennifer Gnana

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics

Syrian central bank

UK removes 24 Syrian entities from sanctions list, including central bank

The latest decision comes after the European Union lifted several sanctions across banking and energy on Syria on Feb. 24.

Latest News

Saudi Arabia's PIF bans PwC advisory, consulting services: What to know

The PricewaterhouseCoopers offices are pictured on Oct. 2, 2018, in London, England.

Saudi Arabia markets Middle East's first euro green bond: What to know

Delegates arrive for the opening session of the United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification, UNCCD COP16, in the Saudi capital Riyadh on December 2, 2024. Saudi Arabia is hosting the COP16 UN conference on land degradation and desertification as the top oil exporter pitches itself as an environmental defender despite criticism of its role at climate talks. (Photo by Fayez Nureldine / AFP) (Photo by FAYEZ NURELDINE/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Syria's new rulers set ambitious economic goals: Are they achievable?

A member of the Syrian security forces stands guard outside the central bank in Damascus, on Dec. 31, 2024.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

What’s behind the power struggle at Mubadala-backed Turkish firm Getir?

GETIR delivery scooters in Paris, France, May 17, 2023.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

A general view shows a new oil plant inaugurated March 22, 2006, in Haradh, Saudi Arabia.

Analysis

Saudi Arabia navigates oil cuts amid Trump pressure, economic strains

Saudi Arabia would need oil to be at $90 per barrel in 2025 to balance its budget, according to Capital Economics.

Jennifer Gnana

By Jennifer Gnana

In Dubai, reporting on Gulf energy policy and politics

This picture shows a construction site for Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund in Riyadh, on April 16, 2023.

Saudi Arabia’s non-oil private sector grows at fastest rate in over a decade

Saudi Arabia's General Authority for Statistics said last week that the kingdom's non-oil GDP growth rate was up 4.3% from 2023, while oil activities declined by 4.5%.

Egyptian pound banknotes sit on a table on March 6, 2024, in Cairo, after Egypt's central bank announced it will allow the exchange rate to be set by the market.

Egypt’s economic reboot fuels bond market return with $2B sale

Egypt is making big moves to resuscitate its economy.

Syria's Foreign Minister Asaad al-Shibani looks on during a session as part of the World Economic Forum annual meeting in Davos, on Jan. 23, 2025.

WEF: Arab businesses ‘very keen’ to invest in Syria after Assad’s ouster

Syria's new foreign minister, Asaad al-Shibani, attended the World Economic Forum in Switzerland this week, along with over 50 heads of state and hundreds of business moguls.

A picture shows the four seasons hotel in Beirut with the snow covered mountain of Sannine in the background on March 8, 2019. (Photo by JOSEPH EID / AFP) (Photo credit should read JOSEPH EID/AFP via Getty Images)

Al-Waleed bin Talal announces Four Seasons to reopen in Beirut, Lebanon

The planned reopening of the hotel, which was damaged in the 2020 port explosion, follows Saudi-backed Gen. Joseph Aoun's becoming president of Lebanon.

An employee at tech startup al-Gameya, uses a computer with the official Facebook page of the application open on a web browser, at the company offices in Cairo, on Sept. 12, 2021.

Venture capital funding in Middle East falls by 29% in 2024

Saudi Arabia, which saw $750 million in venture capital funding last year, saw a 44% drop in funding volume in 2024 compared to 2023.

French former president Nicolas Sarkozy (C) and his wife Carla Bruni-Sarkozy arrive to vote for the first round of parliamentary elections in Paris, on June 30, 2024. A divided France is voting in high-stakes parliamentary elections that could see the anti-immigrant and eurosceptic party of Marine Le Pen sweep to power in a historic first. The candidates formally ended their frantic campaigns at midnight June 28, with political activity banned until the first round of voting. (Photo by ARNAUD FINISTRE / AFP

France’s Sarkozy stands trial on alleged Libya funding: What we know

Former President Nicolas Sarkozy denies allegations that he received 50 million euros to fund his 2007 election campaign from late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi.

Traders sit below the stock market screens at the Dubai Financial Market, United Arab Emirates, Sept. 16, 2019.

Gulf wealth funds propel Middle East deals in 2024

The Gulf region continued its trajectory toward becoming a global investment powerhouse as sovereign wealth funds fed capital into AI, clean energy, entertainment, sports, start-ups and tourism.

A man watches stock movements on a display at the Dubai Financial Market stock exchange in the Gulf emirate on April 12, 2022.

Analysis

Middle East IPOs shine in 2024 but face new challenges

Middle East IPOs hauled in over $13 billion in 2024, and the region also produced three of the year’s 10 largest listings worldwide.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech

Vehicles move past as people queue outside the main headquarters of the Central Bank of Syria to exchange US dollars at prices lower than the black market.

Who is Maysaa Sabrine, first woman to lead Central Bank of Syria?

Syria’s new leadership has appointed Maysaa Sabrine to head the country’s central bank, the first woman to do so in the institution’s history.

This picture taken on March 21, 2024 on Istiklal avenue, Istanbul, shows foreign exchange rates displayed against the Turkish lira. Turkey's central bank raised it's key interest rate on March 21, 2024, resuming a tightening cycle in a bid to tame rising consumer prices, one month after having held rates. In a statement the bank said that the monetary policy committee "has decided to raise the policy rate from 45 percent to 50 percent". (Photo by Yasin AKGUL / AFP) (Photo by YASIN AKGUL/AFP via Getty Images

Turkey’s Central Bank lowers interest rates for the first time in nearly 2 years

The decision to cut interest rates follows 18 months of monetary tightening and comes amid ongoing efforts to stabilize the country’s runaway inflation.

Emiratis wave national flags as citizens celebrate their country's 40 years of independence on National Day, in Abu Dhabi, on Dec. 2, 2011.

Analysis

Gulf’s citizenship industry poised for growth amid new global uncertainty

Flexible visa programs have emerged in the Middle East, fueled by wealthy Gulf states competing to attract foreign investors and skilled professionals as part of their economic diversification strategies.

Samuel Wendel

By Samuel Wendel

In Washington, DC, reporting on regional business and tech