Ins and outs of Saudi banking: infighting yet outstanding

A buoyant local economy means Saudi banks are riding high, but they remain over-exposed to their domestic market.

“I would love to own a bank in Saudi Arabia now. Everyone would. Just look at their profit margins,” says an economist in Riyadh. It is hard to question his logic.

In Saudi Arabia lending is a low-risk business and government expenditure is high, as is confidence in the wider economy. As a result, profits at some of the country’s larger banks rose by 12% last year and even more at the smaller institutions. That trend has continued into this year.

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