GCC banking institutions display the importance of growing open banking.
The evolution of Islamic banking in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) is accelerating as new products and regulatory developments shape the industry. For the institutions cited in our ranking of the Safest Islamic Banks in the GCC, an important area of growth is open banking, which allows bank customers to securely share financial data with third-party providers. This represents a significant opportunity to capture new business with commercial clients, particularly in the small to midsized enterprise segment.
Embedded Shariah-compliant products enable a range of services for real-time cash management, collections, and payments. To speed this development, Islamic banks are expanding partnerships with fintechs. GCC countries have made this area a high priority. The Saudi Central Bank has launched an open banking platform, establishing frameworks for corporate APIs: an important component of the bank’s fintech strategy related to the government’s Saudi Vision 2030 initiative.
The sukuk market is growing steadily—S&P estimates $200 billion in issuance during 2025, up 4% year over year—but the market must adapt to maintain growth as heightened regulation is on the horizon. Under evaluation is a new guideline (Standard 62) from the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAOIFI) that alters the dynamics of the sukuk market. According to S&P, the new standard will mean “a market shift from structures in which contractual obligations of sukuk sponsors underpin repayment to structures where the underlying assets have a more prominent role. This could change the nature of sukuk as an instrument, exposing investors to higher risk, and increase market fragmentation.”
A new leader has emerged in our 2025 ranking of the Safest Islamic Banks in the GCC. Al Rajhi Bank, the largest Islamic bank globally, has claimed the top spot thanks to a Moody’s upgrade to Aa3 after the agency raised Saudi Arabia’s sovereign rating to the same level last November.
