Barclays Opens Riyadh Office After Securing Saudi Operating Licence

With the licence and new office, Barclays can now do business directly in the Kingdom. In October 2025 the bank said it had won a provisional CMA licence and acquired premises in the financial district, and planned to open in Riyadh in 2026. Earlier in 2025 it had received a regional headquarters licence, which Saudi Arabia requires of foreign firms that want to win government business. Barclays already operates elsewhere in the Gulf, including the UAE and Qatar.

"The opening of our Riyadh office marks an important step in our growth in Saudi Arabia and across the Middle East," said C. S. Venkatakrishnan, Barclays' group chief executive.

Majed Al Hassoun, previously chief executive of State Street Saudi Arabia, has joined as chief executive officer and head of investment banking at Barclays Capital Saudi. Based in Riyadh, he will run the local legal entity, build the investment banking and global markets business and act as the bank's senior contact with regulators. He reports to Khaled El Dabag, who heads the regional headquarters, leads investment banking for the Middle East and is co-CEO of the bank's Middle East business with Walid Mezher.

"I am delighted to join Barclays and take on the leadership of building a strong business for the bank in the Kingdom," Al Hassoun said.

Barclays named four other senior executives in Riyadh. Abdulaziz Abdulrahman A. Alshenaifi is head of markets, Abdullah AlToukhi is head of institutional coverage, Susheel Jain is chief financial officer, and Abdulrahman Alanazi is head of compliance and money laundering reporting officer.

Talal AlKhereiji has joined the board of the Saudi entity as an independent non-executive director. He sits alongside chairman Mohammed Al-Sarhan, whose appointment the bank announced last year.

Barclays has not said how many staff the Riyadh office will employ or given revenue targets for its Saudi business.