His Excellency Dr. Fahd bin Abdullah Al-Mubarak, Governor of the Saudi Central Bank, commended the efforts of the Media and Banking Awareness Committee at “Saudi Banks”; which aim to spread and promote financial literacy among all members of society across various segments, and to raise financial literacy by introducing banking services and products, promoting the safe use of such transactions, and addressing issues and developments related to banking activities at the local and global levels.
Al-Mubarak emphasized the Saudi Central Bank’s commitment, in cooperation with the financial sectors, to raising the level of financial guidance and awareness among customers of the banking and financial sector operating in the Kingdom by utilizing various available communication channels, within the framework of serving and protecting customers“ interests, as this is a strategic goal the Central Bank seeks to achieve by ensuring these sectors provide an advanced level of fair and secure transactions and by guaranteeing the widespread availability of financial services at all levels. It should be noted that the ”SAMA Cares" initiative, launched by the Central Bank, and the awareness campaigns accompanying this initiative have—praise be to God—contributed to raising the level of financial awareness among the public. In this context, His Excellency the Governor urged all financial institutions to continue redoubling their efforts; to develop awareness and education programs for customers regarding financial fraud methods—particularly emerging ones—and to continuously assess the effectiveness and efficiency of these awareness tools, as well as to reinforce customers" awareness of the need to verify the legitimacy of their funds“ sources, and that they are subject to accountability by the competent authorities in the event of suspicion regarding the sources of their funds, in addition to developing appropriate awareness approaches for each category or segment based on a database containing all details of financial fraud cases.
It is worth noting that the Banking Media and Awareness Committee at ”Saudi Banks” was recently restructured under the leadership of Mr. Tariq bin Abdulrahman Al-Sadhan, CEO of Riyad Bank (the committee’s host bank). He has overseen the implementation of the committee’s new strategic directions in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030 and the Financial Sector Development Program, focusing on several key areas: banking awareness, financial inclusion, social responsibility, fintech, Islamic banking, and the adoption of a clear vision and mission under the slogan: “An Informed Society, a Responsible Generation.” Since its restructuring, the Committee has organized several banking awareness lectures covering various topics presented by heads of product departments at Saudi banks, and has implemented several strategic initiatives and awareness campaigns aimed at promoting banking awareness.
