Digitalization of finance in the countries of the Gulf Cooperation Council: current trends and challenges

Modern processes in the Arabian Peninsula, in particular the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), are largely linked with the digitalization trends of their economies united in an integration grouping, and the regional economy as a whole. Digitalization affects a number of areas in the region, including the financial sector, the analysis of which is the purpose of this article. The article shows that modern unfavorable trends in the world and in the region, creating serious threats to socio-economic growth, stimulate the “Arabian monarchies” to search for new opportunities to ensure their economic stability and international competitiveness of their economies, and the financial sector traditionally remains one of the “strongest” sides of this group of states, and its importance continues to grow. The article shows that in the 21st century, the Gulf countries continue to pay much attention to the development of the financial and banking sector, increasingly applying modern digital technologies and developing both national and regional mechanisms for its further improvement, since this area is considered in the region as one of the most important and systemically important. The specificity of the article lies in the study and assessment of the process of digitalization of the financial sector in the GCC countries, as well as its effectiveness. The authors come to the conclusion that digitalization in the financial sector of the region is steadily progressing and is already having a noticeable positive impact on country and regional socio-economic processes.