Riyadh - Sharikat Mubasher: Mastercard released the 2026 edition of the ‘Mastercard SME Confidence Index,’ a multi-market study that captures the sentiment, priorities, and growth outlook of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) across Eastern Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EEMEA).
The study found that SMEs across the Kingdom are increasingly embracing digital technologies, payment innovation, and new growth opportunities to strengthen competitiveness and improve operational efficiency.
More than seven in ten small and medium business owners recognize that digital payments are important to help them grow better and faster. Among the SMEs surveyed, 77% accept online payments, 67% accept card payments, and 54% accept mobile payments.
Additionally, businesses identified providing simple, seamless, and user-friendly payment methods (73%), accepting digital payments across multiple channels (58%), and ensuring safe and secure payment processing (49%) as the areas with the greatest potential to support future growth.
These numbers underscore the central role of digital payment capabilities in helping businesses improve efficiency, strengthen customer engagement, and unlock new opportunities.
“The findings reflect the confidence of business owners who are continuing to invest in growth and embrace digital technologies. Because these businesses are so vital to the Kingdom's long-term ambitions under Vision 2030, Mastercard is fully committed to supporting them through our Built Small. Moving Strong. resilience program, ensuring they have the liquidity, tools, and backing needed to navigate uncertainty and emerge stronger,” said Adam Jones, Executive Vice President and Division President for West Arabia at Mastercard.
On the other side, the study also noted that maintaining and growing the business remains a priority for entrepreneurs, with 61% identifying it as their primary focus for the year ahead, while 49% expect revenues to continue growing over the next 12 months, reflecting a positive outlook for future business performance