Rumors of ban on bank loans to expats denied

Saudi Gazette report JEDDAH — A top banking official has denied rumors that the Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency has issued a directive to all local banks to stop offering loans to expatriates regardless of their income. “The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency has nothing to do with the decision by banks to stop offering loans to expatriates. Such decisions are internal moves by individual banks. The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency did not issue anything in this regard,” said Talaat Hafiz, secretary-general of the media and banking awareness committee. He added there no blanket decisions preventing expatriates from obtaining loans from local banks. “Each bank has his own criteria to offer a loan and each client will be assessed by the credits department. Most banks require non-Saudi clients to have a minimum salary of SR8,000 to be eligible to obtain a loan,” said Hafiz. He also said Saudi banks have nothing to do with the hindrance in exchanging the Egyptian pound. Saudi currency exchange outlets have stopped dealing with the Egyptian pound due to its collapse on international markets. “What is happening to the Egyptian pound is in the hands of currency exchange agencies and not banks. The services that local banks offer are limited to and are more concerned with the needs of their clients. In any case, the banks only deal in major global currencies,” said Hafiz. Egyptian financial experts have urged their government to take additional steps to woo more tourists to the country to save foreign exchange and strengthen the pound as well as the national economy. Egyptian financial analyst Mohammed Maher said some Saudi currency exchanges stopped dealing with Egyptian pound due to a lack of confidence in the pound, which is steadily falling against international currencies. “This is primarily an economic decision. The Egyptian black market has also contributed to declining prices of the pound,” he told Okaz/Saudi Gazette. Head of trading at Osool ESB Securities Brokerage, Said Al-Faqi, blamed the Egyptian Central Bank for adopting incorrect monetary policies, which led to the demise of the country’s currency. “The central bank has not taken any measures to halt rising US dollar against the pound,” Al-Faqi told Okaz/Saudi Gazette. Speaking about exclusion of the pound from the special basket of currencies, a high-level Egyptian central bank official said the pound is not among the basket of currencies exchanged globally as it cannot be exchanged outside Egypt and cannot be used to pay foreign debts. Main currencies exchanged globally are US dollar, euro, yen, sterling pound and yuan. The Chinese currency won the status as a member of the International Monetary Fund’s Special Drawing Rights (SDR) basket on Oct. 1, 2016.