Dukhan Bank has entered a strategic partnership with Dibsy to accelerate the rollout of open banking capabilities in Qatar, signalling a deeper push by lenders and fintechs to modernise digital financial services under the country’s evolving regulatory framework. The agreement was announced on the sidelines of Web Summit Qatar, positioning the collaboration as a practical step toward data-driven, customer-centric banking in one of the Gulf’s fastest-digitising markets.The partnership brings together Dukhan Bank’s scale in Sharia-compliant retail and corporate banking with Dibsy’s application programming interface infrastructure, which enables secure data sharing and payment initiation between financial institutions and third-party providers. Executives involved in the announcement said the initiative is designed to support interoperable services such as account aggregation, real-time payments, consent-based data access and personalised financial products, while maintaining strong controls around privacy and cybersecurity.
For Dukhan Bank, the tie-up aligns with its broader digital transformation agenda, which has focused on mobile-first services, straight-through processing and automation across customer journeys. The bank has been expanding its digital channels to reduce friction in onboarding, financing and payments, and sees open banking as a way to integrate external innovation without compromising the principles of Islamic finance. Bank officials indicated that the framework will allow third-party solutions to plug into Dukhan’s ecosystem, enabling faster product development and improved customer experience.
Dibsy, a regional fintech specialising in open banking rails, has been working with banks, merchants and payment providers to standardise secure data exchange across the Middle East. Its platform typically supports consent management, authentication, transaction enrichment and analytics, functions that are increasingly central as regulators encourage competition and transparency in financial services. By partnering with an established Islamic bank, Dibsy gains a pathway to scale use cases that combine compliance with innovation, particularly in markets where Sharia-compliant structures dominate.
Qatar’s move toward open banking forms part of a wider policy effort to strengthen financial infrastructure, support fintech growth and attract international investment. The Qatar Central Bank has been advancing digital payments, licensing fintech activities and setting technical standards to ensure interoperability and consumer protection. Industry participants say the next phase will hinge on execution, including how quickly banks can expose APIs, how consistently consent frameworks are applied and how effectively risks are managed.
Open banking is reshaping competitive dynamics across the Gulf, with incumbents seeking partnerships rather than building everything in-house, and fintechs positioning themselves as neutral infrastructure providers. In Qatar, banks have been cautious but deliberate, balancing innovation with prudential oversight. Analysts note that collaborations like the Dukhan-Dibsy agreement reduce time to market while spreading development costs, a model that has gained traction as customer expectations shift toward seamless, app-based services.
The announcement at Web Summit Qatar also reflects the growing role of global technology forums in catalysing regional deals. Such platforms provide visibility to international investors and vendors while enabling local institutions to benchmark against global best practice. For Qatar’s financial sector, participation underscores ambitions to be seen as a testbed for advanced digital finance rather than a late adopter.
From a customer perspective, open banking promises tangible changes, including the ability to view multiple accounts in one place, initiate payments directly from bank accounts, and access tailored financing options based on richer data. For small and medium-sized enterprises, interoperable services can simplify cash-flow management, reconciliation and access to credit. Islamic banking customers stand to benefit as well, with data-enabled product design supporting more flexible, compliant structures.
Risk management remains a central consideration. Banks and fintechs involved in open banking initiatives are under pressure to demonstrate robust governance, including encryption, tokenisation and continuous monitoring. Consent mechanisms must be clear and revocable, and liability frameworks need to be understood by all parties. Industry participants say partnerships with specialist providers can strengthen these controls by embedding security by design.
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