Bank Syariah Indonesia becomes 24th Foreign Bank in Saudi Arabia

Bank Syariah Indonesia (BSI) is the 24th foreign bank to receive Saudi government approval to open a branch in the Kingdom, following the approval of the Saudi Council of Ministers on Tuesday, April 22, 2025. Bank Sharia is the largest Indonesian bank and is the result of a merger of three banks there.

The list of foreign banks that have obtained licenses to open a branch in the Kingdom includes: Emirates NBD, National Bank of Bahrain, National Bank of Kuwait, Bank Muscat, Deutsche Bank, BNP Paribas, JPMorgan Chase N.A., and National Bank of Pakistan.

The list also includes: TC Ziraat Bank, Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, Qatar National Bank, MUFG Bank Ltd., First Abu Dhabi Bank, UBS AG (formerly Credit Suisse), Standard Chartered Bank, National Bank of Iraq, and Trade Bank of Iraq.

The list of banks includes: Bank of China Limited, Banque Misr, National Bank of Egypt, Bank Sohar International, Bank of Jordan, and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank. If these banks commence operations, there will be 23 foreign bank branches in the Kingdom.

Among these licensed banks, excluding Sharia, which recently obtained a license, data from the Saudi Central Bank indicates that there are six foreign banks in the pilot phase: the Trade Bank of Iraq, Bank of China Limited, Bank of Egypt, National Bank of Egypt, Bank of Jordan, and Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank.

This list does not include foreign commercial or investment banks that have obtained licenses from the Capital Market Authority to practice securities activities.