Profits have improved across the sector, even as lending eases following last year’s Fifa World Cup.
Middle East
Latest articles from Qatar

The World Cup’s socioeconomic legacy will continue to shape Qatar’s future
May 19, 2023Sheikh Ali Alwaleed Al-Thani, CEO of the Investment Promotion Agency of Qatar, talks about the country’s diversification strategy and investment priorities.

The rise and rise of Qatar’s Islamic banking sector
May 30, 2022Kit Gillet talks to Bassel Gamal, group CEO of Qatar Islamic Bank, about the role Islamic banking plays in Qatar today, the potential impact of the 2022 World Cup, and what is holding back the global adoption of Islamic finance.

Gas windfall provides bonus in Qatar’s World Cup year
May 27, 2022As Qatar prepares to host the World Cup later this year, the country’s economy is set to receive a major windfall from higher gas prices.

Rising gas receipts and World Cup influx set to lift Qatari lenders
May 26, 2022The country’s banks are set for a bumper year, even as a heavy reliance on foreign funding raises concerns.

The changing face of sharia-compliant retail banking in the UK
March 9, 2022Al Rayan Bank’s CEO, Giles Cunningham, on the growth prospects for Islamic Finance in the UK, the bank’s pivot towards commercial property and the prospects for sharia-compliant banking in the UK.

Gulf consolidation slows as economic pressures ease
March 1, 2022Middle Eastern fintechs and neobanks are attracting investment from overseas, as the wave of mega-mergers among the region’s largest lenders grinds to a halt.

Qatar’s economy thrives through self-sufficiency
May 24, 2021Despite the challenges of an economic blockade and Covid-19, Qatar's economy entered 2021 relatively unscathed.

Qatari banks' digital transformation remains on track
May 24, 2021The chief executive of Qatar’s Doha Bank on getting through the pandemic and plans for 2021.

Qatar’s banking sector stands strong in face of pandemic
May 24, 2021The Gulf country was well positioned for difficult economic conditions when Covid-19 hit.