Saudi Arabia has seen a significant rise in financial support for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and micro-enterprises. By the end of 2023, the total facilities provided by banks and finance companies reached approximately 275.7 billion riyals, marking a 20% increase from 2022.
According to the Saudi Central Bank, 94% of these facilities, or 258.3 billion riyals, were provided by the banking sector, while finance companies contributed 17.4 billion riyals, accounting for 6% of the total.
The distribution of these facilities over the past years highlights steady growth:
- 2018: 108.52 billion riyals
- 2019: 117.35 billion riyals (+8%)
- 2020: 182.24 billion riyals (+55%)
- 2021: 203.23 billion riyals (+12%)
- 2022: 229.03 billion riyals (+13%)
- 2023: 275.66 billion riyals (+20%)
Breaking down the data further, medium-sized enterprises received 59% of the banking sector’s total facilities by the end of Q4 2023, translating to 151.9 billion riyals. Small enterprises received 84.1 billion riyals.
Finance companies provided 8.23 billion riyals to small enterprises and 6.52 billion riyals to medium-sized enterprises by the end of Q4 2023.
Here is a summary of the quarterly data for banking sector facilities:
- Q1 2018: 87.84 billion riyals
- Q2 2018: 93.60 billion riyals
- Q3 2018: 99.00 billion riyals
- Q4 2018: 100.76 billion riyals
- Q1 2019: 105.02 billion riyals
- Q2 2019: 105.16 billion riyals
- Q3 2019: 106.86 billion riyals
- Q4 2019: 107.97 billion riyals
- Q1 2020: 125.16 billion riyals
- Q2 2020: 147.40 billion riyals
- Q3 2020: 164.99 billion riyals
- Q4 2020: 170.35 billion riyals
- Q1 2021: 175.46 billion riyals
- Q2 2021: 184.76 billion riyals
- Q3 2021: 186.22 billion riyals
- Q4 2021: 188.59 billion riyals
- Q1 2022: 203.41 billion riyals
- Q2 2022: 205.61 billion riyals
- Q3 2022: 212.57 billion riyals
- Q4 2022: 213.23 billion riyals
- Q1 2023: 234.95 billion riyals
- Q2 2023: 245.34 billion riyals
- Q3 2023: 251.64 billion riyals
- Q4 2023: 258.30 billion riyals
For finance companies, the quarterly data is as follows:
- Q1 2018: 7.83 billion riyals
- Q2 2018: 7.66 billion riyals
- Q3 2018: 7.68 billion riyals
- Q4 2018: 7.76 billion riyals
- Q1 2019: 8.15 billion riyals
- Q2 2019: 7.87 billion riyals
- Q3 2019: 8.75 billion riyals
- Q4 2019: 9.38 billion riyals
- Q1 2020: 9.68 billion riyals
- Q2 2020: 10.64 billion riyals
- Q3 2020: 10.75 billion riyals
- Q4 2020: 11.89 billion riyals
- Q1 2021: 12.97 billion riyals
- Q2 2021: 13.46 billion riyals
- Q3 2021: 14.16 billion riyals
- Q4 2021: 14.64 billion riyals
- Q1 2022: 15.27 billion riyals
- Q2 2022: 15.39 billion riyals
- Q3 2022: 15.47 billion riyals
- Q4 2022: 15.81 billion riyals
- Q1 2023: 17.28 billion riyals
- Q2 2023: 17.31 billion riyals
- Q3 2023: 16.93 billion riyals
- Q4 2023: 17.37 billion riyals
This growth in financial support underscores the increasing focus on nurturing SMEs and micro-enterprises in Saudi Arabia.
