Riyadh - Sharikat Mubasher: Saudi Arabia recorded remarkable improvements in financial inclusion globally in 2026, climbing three places to 27^th with its financial score jumping from 45.0 to 48.6.

According to the 2026 Global Financial Inclusion Index from Principal Financial Group® and the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr), Saudi Arabia received the maximum fintech strategy score of 20 out of 20, the highest of any market analyzed, and is one of only five markets classified as a “Next Gen Leader.”

The index ranks 42 markets based on the support provided by employers, the government, and the financial system. It recognizes the markets making the strongest progress in financial inclusion and those investing most heavily in digital financial infrastructure, especially fintech.

It examines both the extent to which markets prioritize fintech and digital financial infrastructure today and whether governments have developed sophisticated, detailed, and forward-looking fintech strategies to accelerate financial inclusion in the future. The analysis evaluates areas including measurable targets, funding commitments, implementation plans, digital public infrastructure, and the integration of AI into financial services.

Charles Brooke, senior managing director and head of Middle East, Central Asia & Africa, Principal Asset Management, said: “Few countries have embraced fintech as systematically, or as strategically, as Saudi Arabia. While many governments support financial innovation through regulation or targeted investment, the Kingdom has gone further by embedding fintech directly into its long-term national development strategy. It regards fintech not as an end in itself, but as an enabler of broader economic and social objectives.”

Across the Index’s three pillars of financial inclusion, Saudi Arabia recorded improvements in two: government support, jumping two places to 20^th, and employer support, advancing one place to 8^th. In the financial system support pillar, the Kingdom ranked 35^th