| 1. | These guidelines are for the applicants seeking to conduct banking business in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The requirements set down the minimum criteria to be met by the applicants and the necessary information and documents to be submitted with the application.
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| 2. | Article 3 of the Banking control law allows Joint Stock Companies to carry on banking business in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
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| 3. | Applicants seeking a license to carry on banking business in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia should apply in writing to SAMA.
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| 4. | Foreign banks may apply to establish branches to carry on banking business in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. For Foreign branches, references to ‘Applicant’ means the parent entity. If any of the founders of a locally incorporated bank is a foreign bank, the foreign partner would also be subject to the requirements for the licensing of a foreign bank branch.
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| 5. | Except as explicitly stated in SAMA’s Prudential Standards, foreign bank branches are subject to the same legislative and prudential requirements as locally incorporated Banks. Although the prime responsibility for oversight of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabian operations of a foreign bank branch rests with local management and its head office as well as with the foreign bank branch’s home supervisor(s), the foreign bank branch is nonetheless required to submit its local operations to SAMA’s prudential supervision and other statutory laws.
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