CMA mulls granting 44 licenses of FinTech ExPermit, says chairman

The Capital Market Authority (CMA) is studying granting licenses to 44 companies within the third batch of the Financial Technology Experimental Permit (FinTech ExPermit), said chairman, Mohammed El-Kuwaiz.

He added that the market regulator has granted FinTech licenses to 9 companies during the first and second batches, following setting up a regulatory framework for the sector.

On the impact of the coronavirus outbreak, El-Kuwaiz noted that CMA aims to support all viable projects without discrimination.

He further explained that the criteria that CMA focuses on in the assessment of projects include feasibility, quality of exports, and the ambitions of entrepreneurs and investors.

He also noted that many projects managed to develop effective business models to face emerging challenges and some of them succeeded in becoming more innovative.

CMA chairman comments came during a virtual meeting organized by Business Incubators and Accelerators Co. (BIAC), a subsidiary of the Saudi Development and Technical Investment Co. (TAQNIA), which is wholly owned by the Public Investment Fund (PIF).