RIYADH: Saudi Arabia’s finance companies witnessed a 13 percent year-on-year surge in total assets to SR64.2 billion ($17.12 billion) in 2023, newly released data from the Kingdom’s central bank has revealed. The figures show that amid increased investment activities and favorable economic conditions, the paid-up share capital for these firms also surged by 6 percent compared to 2022 to reach SR15.5 billion. The bank, also known as SAMA, highlighted that the total financial portfolio of these institutions increased by 12 percent year-on-year to SR84.7 billion in 2023. According to the report, the overall net income of these companies in the Kingdom stood at SR1.7 billion last year. Additionally, the total assets of the real estate refinancing sector witnessed an increase of 48 percent, reaching SR31 billion in 2023. In terms of loan portfolio classification, the retail sector accounted for the largest share at 77 percent, followed by the micro, small and medium enterprises sector at 20 percent, and the corporate sector at 3 percent. Highlighting the progress of Saudization in the sector, the report revealed that over 80 percent of the employees working in financial companies in the Kingdom are Saudis. “By the end of 2023, the number of employees working in finance companies exceeded 6,000 employees where Saudis accounted for 86 percent of the total number of employees,” said SAMA. In May, another report released by the Kingdom’s Small and Medium Enterprises General Authority said that finance companies in Saudi Arabia provided loans amounting to $4.6 billion in the last three months of 2023, marking a year-on-year rise of 9.3 percent. On the other hand, banks in Saudi Arabia provided credit facilities worth $68.9 billion in the final quarter of 2023, representing a rise of 21.1 percent compared to the same period of the previous year. In its May monthly statistical bulletin the central bank revealed that Saudi banking sector’s loans increased to SR2.68 trillion in April, marking an 11 percent increase compared to the same month of the previous year. According to SAMA, personal loans constituted 47 percent of banks’ total lending, with corporate loans making up the remaining 53 percent.