News

Abu Dhabi, 27 October 2022: In a ceremony hosted by the Arab Monetary Fund, Mr. Tarek Raouf,  Chief Executive Officer of Egyptian Banks Co. for Technological Advancement (EBC), a payment system operator owned by the Central Bank of Egypt, and a group of commercial banks, and Mr. Mehdi Manaa, CEO of Buna, the cross-border payment system operated by Arab Regional Payments Clearing and Settlement Organization “ARPCSO”, owned by The Arab Monetary Fund “AMF”,  signed today a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) putting in place a framework of cooperation between Buna and EBC.  The ceremony was held in the AMF headquarter in Abu Dhabi, UAE, under the patronage of H.E Dr. Abdulrahman A. Al Hamidy, Director General Chairman of the Board of the Arab Monetary Fund.

Abu Dhabi, 26^th October 2022: Buna (the cross-border payment system operated by Arab Regional Payments Clearing and Settlement Organization “ARPCSO”, owned by The Arab Monetary Fund “AMF”), holds tomorrow a workshop to share updates on its strategic initiatives.

The workshop comprises different topics to update the Buna community on several key developments such as the Buna’s approach to cybersecurity and the different enhancements introduced recently to cater for the growing needs of our participants in terms of level of support and scope of service.

In addition, the workshop will be the occasion to announce a new strategic partnership and a major step towards building the instant payment hub for the Arab world and beyond.

Abu Dhabi, 15th September 2022: Buna (the cross-border payment system operated by Arab Regional Payments Clearing and Settlement Organization “ARPCSO”, owned by The Arab Monetary Fund “AMF”), holds today a workshop to share latest achievements and new milestones with its large community.

The agenda of the workshop comprises a panel of senior-level speakers from Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank (ADCB) and Arab National Bank (ANB) who will share their practical experiences in utilizing Buna system. The workshop will also cover different other topics to update the Buna community on the progress achieved on key technological and regulatory matters as well as the evolution of the participation and payments activity in Buna.

Globally, a circular economy (CE) is being promoted as a policy to achieve economic, environmental, and social sustainability. A significant reason for this is the increasing recognition of CE indices as effective tools in preventing resource waste and reducing negative environmental impacts. The aim of this study, therefore, is to establish a regional index based on CE indicators that can be used to measure countries' transition toward circular economies implementation.

Buna (the payment system operated by Arab Regional Payments Clearing and Settlement Organization “ARPCSO”, owned by The Arab Monetary Fund “AMF”) and Standard Chartered held a ceremony today in the AMF premises to announce the live operation of euro cross-border payments in Buna.

The service is now activated by multiple participant banks from various Arab countries, with more participation expected in the upcoming weeks to benefit from the real-time settlement feature of euro payments taking place in Buna across borders in compliance with global best practices and international standards.

An understanding of the volatility structure of foreign exchange rates is fundamental to assessing investment risks in the forex market. This study, therefore, analyzes the symmetric and asymmetric information in the volatility structure of selected Arab exchange rate markets.

The study applied the EGARCH model for analyzing the volatility structure of selected currencies using the daily data of rate of return of real exchange rates over the period from January 3, 2017, to June 2, 2022. These currencies are the Saudi Riyal, Kuwait Dinar, Bahrain Dinar, Egyptian Pound, Algerian Dinar, Tunisian Dinar, and Moroccan Dirham.

In line with its continuous efforts to support the decision-making process in Arab countries, the Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) has released the Seventeenth Edition of the Arab Economic Outlook Report, including growth and inflation forecasts for Arab economies for 2022 and 2023.

The report indicated that the global economy is experiencing challenges related to the global supply chains and high commodity prices, which raise concerns about global food security. As a result, international institutions have reduced their forecasts for global economic growth issued in January 2022.

Abu Dhabi, 11th August 2022: Buna, the cross-border payment system owned by the AMF, holds today a workshop to shed light on several key capabilities and live experiences that are of interest to Buna’s banking community, namely an overview on its Application Programming Interface (API), Buna’s plans for extending its operating window, and various compliance aspects including sharing live experiences and findings.

The workshop will host more than 200 senior officials representing central banks, along with various institutions from the financial, banking, and payment sectors in the region and beyond.

The Arab Monetary Fund (AMF) will increase the use of responsible digital payments in its programs and operations to boost financial inclusion, transparency and efficiency. The AMF will continue to prioritize youth, women and small businesses in its efforts on payment digitization, helping advance the Sustainable Development Goals.

H.E. Dr. Abdulrahman A. Al Hamidy, Director General Chairman of the Board of the Arab Monetary Fund, said: “Making responsible payment digitization a reality across our member countries will help bring many more citizens, particularly youth, women and small businesses, in the financial system, in a way that serves their needs. By doing that, Arab nations will foster sustainable growth, create employment opportunities, reduce inequality and maintain financial stability”.  

Abu Dhabi, 30 June 2022: The Arab Regional Payments Clearing and Settlement Organization (ARPCSO), which operates Buna, the cross-border and multi-currency payment published its annual report for the year 2021. The 2021 annual report marks the first year of Buna’s operations. It summarizes the different achievements realized during this eventful year and the progress made in realizing our mission to provide efficient payment solutions that empower Arab economies and promote regional integration.       

 Commenting on this occasion His Excellency Dr. Abdulrahman A. Al Hamidy, Director General Chairman of the Board of the Arab Monetary Fund, said: “This annual report represents another important milestone that confirms the solid foundation of Buna and reinforces its potential to support growth and development in the Arab region and beyond.”