Saudi Arabia has withdrawn from mBridge, a China-led digital currency platform designed to facilitate cross-border payments without relying on the US dollar, Middle East Eye reported, citing the Financial Times.
Riyadh joined the initiative in 2024 alongside China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates. The Bank for International Settlements was also involved in the project. According to the report, the Saudi Central Bank said it completed its participation in mBridge in May 2025.
The platform uses blockchain technology to allow central banks to conduct transactions directly through digital currencies. Its structure could lower the cost of transactions while reducing the need for the dollar to serve as an intermediary in cross-border payments.
Saudi Arabia's involvement lasted from its entry in 2024 until the central bank said its participation concluded in May the following year. The information provided did not specify why Riyadh left the initiative or whether the decision would affect any other participants.
The report also did not indicate whether Saudi Arabia had carried out transactions through the system during its period of involvement. No details were provided on the scale of its participation, the amount of any payments processed or whether it had moved beyond testing or other forms of engagement.
The departure leaves China, Hong Kong, Thailand and the United Arab Emirates among the named participants in the cross-border platform. mBridge's stated technical model is based on direct central-bank transactions using digital currencies, with blockchain providing the underlying infrastructure.
The Saudi Central Bank's statement, as described in the report, characterised the change as the completion of its participation. No further explanation, timetable or announcement concerning future involvement in the platform was included in the supplied material.
Reporting attribution: based on reporting by Middle East Eye — original source: https://www.middleeasteye.net/live-blog/live-blog-update/saudi-arabia-withdraws-china-led-digital-currency-platform.