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In a landmark move that is guaranteed to further enhance the quality of banking services in the region, the National Bank of Bahrain (NBB) officially launched its Open Banking solutions earlier this month. 

The NBB is the first bank to do so in the entire Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region making history. 

The new “Aggregator” offering was officially unveiled at the Capital Club in the presence of a gathering of media personnel, government officials, as well as top executives representing the banking and financial sector. 

Of note here is that NBB has been a frontrunner in the development and adoption of open banking technologies ever since the Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) mandated a new regulatory framework last year in November. The CBB mandate urged all Bahraini banks to embrace open banking solutions to ensure enhanced efficiency, transparency, and customer-experience in the long run. 

To further expedite the progress on that front, the NBB entered an agreement with the Kingdom’s first open banking FinTech provider Tarabut Gateway. As of now, the bank has launched the phase-1 of its account aggregation services using a dedicated mobile app. 

NBB’s launch of its Aggregation service marks a new era for Bahrain’s banking sector and sets new standards in digital banking services which will elevate the customer experience.

Speaking of the impact of NBB’s new Open Banking solutions on the broader banking and finance sector, Jean-Christophe Durand, Chief Executive Officer of NBB stated “This is a proud moment for NBB as we lead the industry into the future of banking. Today, we have taken a considerable step into the next wave of innovation in the digital economy, setting a solid foundation for the nationwide implementation of Open Banking and further supporting the government’s vision to strengthen Bahrain’s positioning as a global Fintech Hub. Our biggest accomplishment is that we achieved this feat in less than a year thanks to the guidance and support of the CBB, the efforts of Tarabut and the passion, determination and hard work of our NBB team”.

Speaking on the announcement, Abdulla Almoayed, CEO of Tarabut Gateway said “This achievement is a testament to the Government of Bahrain’s vision to cement our country as a regional powerhouse in FinTech. We are delighted to be the first licensed Open Banking platform in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). With Tarabut Gateway, pioneers in the financial services sector, such as NBB will now be able to provide bespoke Open Banking services to their customers. I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to everyone who has joined us on this exciting journey.”