Bahrain telecom operator is ready for crypto payments
Gulf: A famous subsidiary of Bahrain Telecom Operators STC group recently announced collaboration arrangements with payment service provider Easy Financial Services. The system has started an opening that enables clients to bill their bills using crypto. According to a statement, the telecom operator’s action demonstrates its ‘intense focus on advancing Bahrain’s fintech sector as a world-class digital enabler. As we all know, consumers have become smart and opting for new payment methods that are secure and simple. Cryptocurrencies are overgrowing and becoming popular across the globe. However, the collaboration with Easy Financial Services is an initiative and a strategic step from STC Bahrain. Towards increasing the payment methods with the future of currency. Moreover, this will help in increasing demand for flexible and easy-to-use crypto payments. Furthermore, it signifies STC Bahrain’s commitment to advancing the Kingdom’s fintech landscape.
2022 Year end: what does 2023 hold for Iraq?
Iraq will see the 20th anniversary of the us-led invasion of the country that ended saddam hussein’s dictatorship in three months’ time. During the nearly two decades that it has lived under the post-Saddam regime, the country has been rocked by a protracted political crisis and suffered an insurgency that has torn it apart. It has also been marred by government dysfunction and endemic corruption, while its oil-fuelled economy has been severely damaged by unprecedented mismanagement, taking a serious toll on the population. While the fragile political system is still the main driver, the country’s security conundrum remains the force shaping Iraq’s future, as developments on the ground further complicate the scene.
Kuwait benefits from oil price boom
Kuwait’s Ministry of finance announced on Nov. 20 that it had narrowed its budget deficit for the 2021-2022 financial year more than it had initially forecasted, dropping 72.2 percent year-on-year to 2.99 billion dinars ($9.71 billion). The improvement comes on the back of elevated oil revenues. Meanwhile, the newly elected parliament approved on Nov. 1 the country’s delayed budget for the fiscal year 2022-2023. The budget assumes an oil price of $80 per barrel and a break-even point of $80.4. It forecasts that revenues will be 23.4 billion dinars ($76 billion) with 91 percent deriving from oil. Expenditure is expected to be at 23.5 billion dinars ($76.3 billion), with around 75 percent of expenditure being directed toward public sector salaries and subsidies.
Sharakah outlines future vision for Oman SMEs
Sharakah, Fund for Development of Youth Projects, made by Royal Decree for supporting the SME sector in Oman, recently attended the 18th annual meeting of the International Network for Small and Medium Enterprises (INSME), held in Baku, Azerbaijan. The International Network for SMEs, based in Rome, Italy, holds an annual general meeting to address diverse subjects and significant challenges that concern the SME industry besides discussing the achievements and goals of the Association. This year’s INSME conference, with the theme “Empowering SMEs – Economic Diversification & Green Growth,” was held at the JW Marriott Hotel, Baku under the patronage of His Excellency Mikayil Jabbarov, Minister of Economy of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Football world cup may contribute Rs4.25tr to Qatar’s economy
The 2022 FIFA World Cup, which saw 32 teams from five confederations playing 64 matches during the course of 29 days, is expected to contribute $17 billion (Pakistani Rs4.25 trillion) to Qatar’s economy during the event when final calculations are carried out, besides providing $35 billion (Pakistani Rs8.75 trillion) betting boon for bookmakers operating across the planet. A week ago, Qatar World Cup 2022 CEO, Nasser al-Khater, had hoped that the FIFA event would contribute $17 billion to Qatar’s economy during the event. The dollar to Pakistani rupee conversion in this story has been done at Rs250 to one American dollar, a figure that is higher than the interbank Pak Rupee greenback parity and less than the black-market value of the US currency.
Organized disruption: Saudi Arabia’s formula for growth
Saudi Arabia’s current growth is unusual. The International Monetary Fund’s (IMF’s) recent Article IV Consultation report1 anticipates that the Kingdom’s gross domestic product (GDP) will grow by 7.6 percent this year, which we now expect to be the highest among the G20 (Group of Twenty). This will be the country’s best growth performance since the early 2000s. This success combines diversification, technology and sound policy innovation all at once. These three channels represent the Saudi formula for growth, which we expect to propel performance over the next decade.
UAE’s gdp expected to grow at 7.6pc in 2022
The UAE’s central bank expects real gross domestic product growth of 7.6 percent this year, an upward revision of more than a percentage point, while lowering expectations for growth next year, state news agency WAM said on Monday. Real GDP was expected to grow 3.9 percent in 2023, revised down from a previous estimate. The UAE’s economy minister said earlier this month that GDP is expected to grow 6.5 percent this year, and more than 7 percent next year. The next World Trade Organization ministerial conference will be held in Abu Dhabi in February 2024, the global trade watchdog confirmed in a statement on Twitter on Monday. The UAE and Cameroon were both vying to host the event and came to an informal agreement for Abu Dhabi to host the first one and Cameroon to do the next, trade sources said last week. Trade ministers from the body’s 164 members meet every few years at ministerial conferences and seek to agree on new global commerce rules.