Manama, Bahrain: The Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB) has reported a significant increase in financial institution licensing, with 16 new financial firms approved and 52 additional applications underway from early 2024 through mid-2025.
This surge highlights Bahrain’s growing appeal as a destination for digital-first financial services, with nearly 75% of the 68 applications coming from international applicants. The influx is expected to create over 850 jobs initially, with more opportunities anticipated as newly licensed firms scale their operations.
The license applications span a diverse range of categories, including wholesale banks, payments, investment services, insurance, and crypto-asset services. This diverse portfolio reasserts Bahrain as a hub for financial innovation and solidifies its reputation as a competitive launchpad for regional and international firms.
Notably, 16 applicants have been licensed during this period, including two wholesale banks, with additional bank license applications currently in the pipeline. The CBB continues to work closely with the remaining applicants to support them in meeting the licensing requirements.
Commenting on this, H.E. Khalid Humaidan, Governor of the Central Bank of Bahrain said, “This increase in licensing applications reflects the CBB’s dual mandate of ensuring stability while fostering growth, and underscores the strength of our regulatory framework and the Kingdom’s unique ability to attract innovation without compromising financial stability. This achievement is the result of close collaboration with our partners across government and industry, and reaffirms Bahrain’s role as a gateway for regional and global growth in financial services.”
Central to this success is the CBB’s unified regulatory model, which provides licensees with a single point of contact across all financial sub-sectors. This model eliminates conflicting requirements from multiple authorities, streamlines compliance, and offers consistent oversight.
The announcement was made during the FS Horizons: Doubling Down on Digital event, hosted in partnership with the Bahrain Economic Development Board, where industry leaders gathered to highlight Bahrain’s advancements in digital banking, payments infrastructure, and talent development.
