{"version":"1","article":{"id":"sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation","slug":"sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation","language":"en","url":"https://haberpaper.com/en/news/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation","api_url":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation?lang=en","title":"SAMA discusses bank readiness for open-banking payment initiation","summary":"Saudi Arabia’s central bank used a 16 September forum with banks to discuss readiness for Payment Initiation Services and wider business use of open banking. Its announcement reports a consultation agenda, not a new licence or broad service rollout.","category":"finance","region":"world","topics":[],"published_at":"2026-10-10T15:42:15+03:00","modified_at":"2026-10-10T15:42:15+03:00","publication_basis":"publication-record","event_period":"2026-09-16","event_period_basis":"event-or-reference-period","sources":[{"name":"Saudi Central Bank (SAMA)","url":"https://sama.gov.sa/en-US/MediaCenter/News/Pages/news-1171.aspx","checkedAt":"2026-10-10","publishedAt":"2026-09-17"}],"translations":[{"language":"tr","url":"https://haberpaper.com/tr/news/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation","api_url":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation?lang=tr"},{"language":"en","url":"https://haberpaper.com/en/news/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation","api_url":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation?lang=en"},{"language":"ar","url":"https://haberpaper.com/ar/news/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation","api_url":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation?lang=ar"},{"language":"fr","url":"https://haberpaper.com/fr/news/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation","api_url":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation?lang=fr"},{"language":"es","url":"https://haberpaper.com/es/news/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation","api_url":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation?lang=es"}],"data_types":["table"],"data":{"version":1,"blocks":[{"id":"forum-agenda","type":"table","title":{"tr":"Açık bankacılık forumu gündemi","en":"Open banking forum agenda","ar":"جدول أعمال منتدى المصرفية المفتوحة","fr":"Ordre du jour du forum sur l’open banking","es":"Agenda del foro de banca abierta"},"description":{"tr":"SAMA'nın forum duyurusunda belirttiği tarih, katılımcılar ve öncelikler.","en":"Date, participants and priorities stated in SAMA’s forum announcement.","ar":"التاريخ والمشاركون والأولويات الواردة في إعلان ساما عن المنتدى.","fr":"Date, participants et priorités mentionnés dans le communiqué de SAMA.","es":"Fecha, participantes y prioridades indicados en el anuncio de SAMA."},"methodology":{"tr":"Yalnızca SAMA'nın 17 Eylül tarihli açıklamasında bulunan bilgiler derlenmiştir.","en":"Compiled only from information in SAMA’s 17 September announcement.","ar":"جُمعت البيانات من المعلومات الواردة في إعلان ساما بتاريخ 17 سبتمبر فقط.","fr":"Données compilées uniquement à partir du communiqué de SAMA du 17 septembre.","es":"Datos compilados únicamente a partir del anuncio de SAMA del 17 de septiembre."},"sourceUrls":["https://sama.gov.sa/en-US/MediaCenter/News/Pages/news-1171.aspx"],"updatedAt":"2026-10-10T12:05:31Z","columns":[{"key":"topic","label":{"tr":"Başlık","en":"Topic","ar":"الموضوع","fr":"Thème","es":"Tema"},"type":"text"},{"key":"detail","label":{"tr":"Açıklama","en":"Detail","ar":"التفصيل","fr":"Détail","es":"Detalle"},"type":"text"}],"rows":[{"topic":"Forum date","detail":"2026-09-16"},{"topic":"Participants","detail":"Open Banking leaders from banks"},{"topic":"Payment initiation","detail":"Bank readiness for Payment Initiation Services"},{"topic":"Business adoption","detail":"Expanding businesses’ use of Open Banking services"},{"topic":"Additional agenda","detail":"Service quality, bank-fintech coordination and customer experience"}]}]},"data_compilations":[{"id":"forum-agenda","creator":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https://haberpaper.com/#organization","name":"Haber Paper","url":"https://haberpaper.com/"},"license":{"@type":"CreativeWork","@id":"https://haberpaper.com/en/data-terms/v1#license","name":"Haber Paper Original Data Compilation License 1.0","url":"https://haberpaper.com/en/data-terms/v1"},"rights_scope":"Haber Paper original data arrangement, labels and methodology notes only; underlying source rights and permissions remain separate.","source_license_url":null}],"data_downloads":[{"id":"forum-agenda","formats":{"json":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation/data/forum-agenda?lang=en&format=json","csv":"https://haberpaper.com/api/v1/articles/sama-open-banking-forum-payment-initiation/data/forum-agenda?lang=en&format=csv"}}],"content":{"paragraphs":["The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) held an Open Banking Forum on Wednesday, 16 September 2026, on the sidelines of Money20/20 Middle East. The forum brought together open-banking leaders from banks, and SAMA published its account on 17 September. The regulator said it reviewed progress in the Kingdom’s open-banking ecosystem and highlighted banks’ role in developing secure and innovative financial services for individuals and businesses. Priorities for the next stage included banks’ readiness for Payment Initiation Services and wider use of open-banking services by businesses. SAMA described a discussion about industry readiness; it did not announce a new licence, product launch or go-live date.","According to the central bank, participants also discussed improving service quality, strengthening coordination between banks and fintech companies, and delivering a more consistent customer experience. Open banking generally involves customer-authorised sharing of financial data and connected services, but this forum notice gives no technical details about a specific implementation, transaction count or commercial provider. Payment initiation is described as a next-stage priority. That wording does not establish that the service is entirely absent from Saudi Arabia; it shows that SAMA placed bank readiness for the area on the forum’s agenda. The announcement does not set out the service’s operating scope or customer access conditions.","For businesses, broader use of open banking can raise practical questions about consent-based access to financial data and the integration of bank-fintech connections into existing workflows. SAMA placed security, service reliability and customer protection alongside the regulatory framework. Those considerations matter when data access and payment functionality are combined. The notice, however, does not publish a new API standard, technical eligibility requirements, data scope, fees or a timetable applying to all banks. It should therefore not be read as a compliance change taking effect immediately for companies. Any such requirements would need to be confirmed in a separate regulatory or technical publication.","The forum reflects SAMA’s stated approach of coordinating with banks and fintech companies as the open-banking ecosystem develops. In the bank’s description, the next stage focuses on readiness for payment initiation and expanding use among businesses. The source does not say how many banks are ready, when a service will go live or whether existing usage has produced a measurable economic benefit. There is consequently no basis here for claims about macroeconomic impact or the launch of a particular banking product. The verified event is the 16 September consultation and the agenda SAMA reported. Further steps depend on future technical and regulatory notices from SAMA or participating banks."],"key_points":[],"sections":[]},"text":"Saudi Arabia’s central bank used a 16 September forum with banks to discuss readiness for Payment Initiation Services and wider business use of open banking. Its announcement reports a consultation agenda, not a new licence or broad service rollout.\n\nThe Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) held an Open Banking Forum on Wednesday, 16 September 2026, on the sidelines of Money20/20 Middle East. The forum brought together open-banking leaders from banks, and SAMA published its account on 17 September. The regulator said it reviewed progress in the Kingdom’s open-banking ecosystem and highlighted banks’ role in developing secure and innovative financial services for individuals and businesses. Priorities for the next stage included banks’ readiness for Payment Initiation Services and wider use of open-banking services by businesses. SAMA described a discussion about industry readiness; it did not announce a new licence, product launch or go-live date.\n\nAccording to the central bank, participants also discussed improving service quality, strengthening coordination between banks and fintech companies, and delivering a more consistent customer experience. Open banking generally involves customer-authorised sharing of financial data and connected services, but this forum notice gives no technical details about a specific implementation, transaction count or commercial provider. Payment initiation is described as a next-stage priority. That wording does not establish that the service is entirely absent from Saudi Arabia; it shows that SAMA placed bank readiness for the area on the forum’s agenda. The announcement does not set out the service’s operating scope or customer access conditions.\n\nFor businesses, broader use of open banking can raise practical questions about consent-based access to financial data and the integration of bank-fintech connections into existing workflows. SAMA placed security, service reliability and customer protection alongside the regulatory framework. Those considerations matter when data access and payment functionality are combined. The notice, however, does not publish a new API standard, technical eligibility requirements, data scope, fees or a timetable applying to all banks. It should therefore not be read as a compliance change taking effect immediately for companies. Any such requirements would need to be confirmed in a separate regulatory or technical publication.\n\nThe forum reflects SAMA’s stated approach of coordinating with banks and fintech companies as the open-banking ecosystem develops. In the bank’s description, the next stage focuses on readiness for payment initiation and expanding use among businesses. The source does not say how many banks are ready, when a service will go live or whether existing usage has produced a measurable economic benefit. There is consequently no basis here for claims about macroeconomic impact or the launch of a particular banking product. The verified event is the 16 September consultation and the agenda SAMA reported. Further steps depend on future technical and regulatory notices from SAMA or participating banks.","corrections":[],"editorial_illustration":{"kind":"symbolic-editorial-illustration","documentary":false,"scope":"section","asset_id":"finance","url":"https://haberpaper.com/assets/illustrations/finance-1536.webp","width":1536,"height":1024,"alt":"Symbolic financial system with a vault door, columns and unmarked coins.","language":"en"},"section_illustration":{"kind":"symbolic-editorial-illustration","documentary":false,"scope":"section","asset_id":"finance","url":"https://haberpaper.com/assets/illustrations/finance-1536.webp","width":1536,"height":1024,"alt":"Symbolic financial system with a vault door, columns and unmarked coins.","language":"en"}}}