DBS and Banque Saudi Fransi team up to unlock Asia-GCC payments growth

Singapore-based DBS and Riyadh’s Banque Saudi Fransi have formed a strategic partnership aimed at expanding trade finance and cross-border payment flows between Asia and Saudi Arabia. This collaboration is intended to tap the growing economic corridor between the Gulf Cooperation Council countries and Asian nations by making trade settlement, financing, and currency-clearing more seamless.

Both banks have agreed to explore several joint initiatives. These include offering trade financing tools such as letters of credit, bankers’ guarantees, and trade loans to each other’s clients. They also plan to work together on financing transactions in order to better spread risk and increase their capacity to serve clients across both regions.

Efforts will be made to utilise each institution’s clearing networks. DBS has access to major Asian currency-clearing corridors including Singapore, China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Banque Saudi Fransi provides clearing in Saudi Riyals. Under the arrangement, BSF may use DBS’s Globe Send platform to enable same-day cross-border payments using its global pay-out network.

The agreement was formalised during the Sibos financial services conference in Frankfurt during October 2025. This timing underscores how banks are looking to strengthen connectivity as trade volumes between Asia and Gulf countries rise sharply.

Trade between Southeast Asia and GCC nations reached roughly 130.7 billion US dollars in 2023. That trade is expected to grow by about an additional 50 billion US dollars by 2027. Projections also suggest trade between China and GCC countries could double to about 1.9 trillion US dollars by 2035. These figures show that there is substantial potential for increased flows of goods, services, and capital.

Executives from both banks believe that greater financial connectivity will benefit businesses and consumers alike. The goal is to reduce friction in payments and to support investment and remittances across borders. For DBS, this agreement strengthens its role as a hub in Asian markets. For Banque Saudi Fransi, it reinforces its contribution to Saudi Arabia’s growing economic linkages under its diversification and global trade ambitions.