Saudi Arabia’s Minister of Finance Mohammed Aljadaan recently led the Saudi delegation to Zurich, Switzerland, where the 4th Saudi-Swiss Financial Dialogue was held. Senior officials from the Ministry of Finance, Saudi Central Bank, Insurance Authority, Financial Sector Development Program, and Fintech Saudi also participated in the dialogue.
The financial dialogue covered new avenues for collaboration, investments, the global macroeconomic outlook, international cooperation, financial sector developments, and updates on banking, digital finance, insurance, and sustainable finance.
Enhancing investment ties
The event sought to highlight the importance of strengthening economic and financial ties between the two countries. During his participation, Aljadaan noted that Switzerland is one of Saudi Arabia’s notable trading partners with over 100 companies in the Kingdom.
Aljadaan emphasized Saudi Arabia’s intention of seeking deeper ties with Switzerland and exploring new areas like insurance while leveraging expertise in fintech, a sector with significant investment from both countries.
For her part, Aljadaan’s counterpart, Karin Keller-Sutter, stressed the importance of international cooperation in preventing financial crises, citing Switzerland’s expertise and collaboration with Saudi Arabia in multilateral bodies.
Notably, Saudi Arabia’s exports to Switzerland reached $810.67 million, while Switzerland’s exports to the Kingdom reached $6.77 billion in 2023.
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Bolstering financial ties
During the visit, Aljadaan met with Colm Kelleher, chairman of the Union Bank of Switzerland (UBS), where he discussed ways to enhance existing cooperation between Saudi Arabia and the bank in addition to other common interests.
In an effort to support investments under Saudi Vision 2023, Aljadaan also held discussions with Thomas Jordan, chairperson of the Swiss National Bank, and Urs Baertschi, CEO of property and casualty reinsurance at Swiss Re Group.
In addition, the finance minister exchanged views on the economic and global challenges with Jos Dijsselhof, CEO of SIX Swiss Exchange. The two also discussed opportunities for collaboration between the Saudi and Swiss stock exchanges.
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