Saudi Central Bank Launches Google Pay Amid Promotion of Digital Payments

The Saudi Central Bank (SAMA) has launched Google Pay through the national payment system, mada, in Saudi Arabia.

Google Pay enables users to provision and manage their mada cards and credit cards within Google Wallet, SAMA said in a Monday (Sept. 15) press release.

“The initiative is part of SAMA’s ongoing efforts to enhance the digital payments ecosystem in Saudi Arabia in line with the objectives of the Financial Sector Development Program, a key pillar of Saudi Vision 2030,” the central bank said in the release. “It also reflects SAMA’s commitment to developing a robust digital payments infrastructure for transformation into a less cash-dependent society by providing advanced digital payment solutions that align with international standards.”

In its own announcement of this news, Google said in a Monday product update that the launch of Google Pay in Saudi Arabia is enabled by mada and that the service is available to users of Al Rajhi Bank and Riyad Bank, with additional banks to be added gradually.

The company said Google Pay enables users to use “Tap to Pay” in stores, and soon in apps and on the web, and enables them to add and manage their mada cards and credit cards within Google Wallet.

Google Wallet also enables users to store loyalty cards, boarding passes, event tickets and other digital items, per the product update.

“This keeps everything important organized in one convenient place, making it easy to access whatever they need, right from their phone,” the update said.

Riyad Bank said in a Tuesday (Sept. 16) press release that it will make Google Pay available to its customers gradually and will roll it out to all Android users “in the near future.”

“The digital wallet service joins a suite of digital solutions provided by the bank to its customers, aiming to offer the simplest methods for completing purchases,” the bank said in the release. “Through Google Wallet, Riyad Bank customers will be able to add all types of their Riyad Bank cards to Google Wallet and make payments via point-of-sale (POS) devices that support Near Field Communication (NFC) technology.”

The PYMNTS Intelligence and TerraPay collaboration “Global Money Movement: Saudi Arabia Edition” found that under Vision 2030, Saudi Arabia has prioritized digital innovation and financial inclusion.