Bahrain
“Can Bahrain leverage its CBB-mandated Open Banking Framework and progressive fintech regulation to become the dominant embedded finance hub for the GCC and broader MENA region?”
HQManama, Kingdom of Bahrain
IndustryBank / National
The story
Bahrain is a sovereign nation-state whose Central Bank (CBB) has become a proactive embedded finance regulator in the GCC region. The CBB introduced one of the first Open Banking frameworks in the Middle East in 2018, modelled on the UK OBIE standard, mandating retail bank participation in AIS and PIS. Bahrain's fintech ecosystem has since attracted embedded finance platforms including Tarabut (MENA's leading open banking platform), BNPL providers, and digital insurance aggregators, positioning the Kingdom as a regional fintech hub.
Product timeline
2018
Bahrain enacted the Personal Data Protection Law (PDPL), Law No. 30 of 2018, providing a legal framework for data processing.· pivot
2018
Central Bank of Bahrain introduced Open Banking Module (OB) in Volume 5 of CBB Rulebook, mandating account information and payment initiation services.· banking
2020
Bahrain Open Banking Framework (BOBF) v1.0.0 published, with AIS and PIS API specifications based on UK OBIE and ISO standards.· banking
2025
Bahrain Islamic Bank (BisB) and Tarabut signed MoU to develop revenue-based SME financing solutions leveraging POS transaction data.· lending
Regulated entities
National Banking Regulator / Central Bank
Bahrain
Central Bank of Bahrain (CBB)
The stack
Payments / PSP
Lending
POS-transaction-based revenue financing for SMEs (BisB x Tarabut)BNPL installment plans (ONE App)FLOOSS Split BNPL on POS (PIE x FLOOSS)
Open banking
FX & payouts
Accounting gap: none