Saudi mothers can open bank accounts for their children
The Saudi Arabian Monetary Authority (SAMA) said it will allow mothers to open bank accounts on behalf of their children, so long as they are minors.
SAMA said in a circular on its website it wanted to help empower mothers to manage their children’s affairs. Children’s accounts will be in the name of the minor but a subsidiary of the mother’s account .
Saudi Arabia was the top reformer and improver among 190 economies in the World Bank’s Women, Business and the Law 2021 report, achieving a score of 80 out of 100, compared with last year’s 70.6.
Prior to this decision, a married mother had to bring her husband or obtain consent from the court, to open a bank account for her children.
Fathers, as the legal guardians, were the only parent allowed to open accounts for children under previous SAMA regulations unless the mother obtained a mandate or guardianship certificate.
The latest changes are part of ongoing financial reforms aimed at boosting banking services and improving financial literacy among citizens.
