News

Oracle Opens A New Cloud Region In Abu Dhabi

Oracle aims to operate a network of at least 44 cloud regions globally by the end of 2022.

Published

4 years ago

November 13, 2021

David Morelo

oracle opens a new cloud region in abu dhabi

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The demand for cloud computing has surged massively in the Middle East since the outbreak of the pandemic, and companies like Oracle are happy to meet it.

Earlier this week, the Texas-based company announced the opening of its second cloud region in the United Arab Emirates, providing local businesses with global, secure, and high-performance environments that they can use to support their workloads.

The new cloud region is located in Abu Dhabi, and, together with the older Dubai region, it supports the UAE’s Fourth Industrial Revolution Strategy.

“With the Dubai and Abu Dhabi Regions, we have the required cloud infrastructure for organizations across public and private sectors, including SMBs, to accelerate their digital transformation,” said Oracle’s executive vice president of Technology for the EMEA region, Richard Smith.

According to Oracle, the main benefits of the Abu Dhabi Region for local businesses include easier data compliance, reduced costs, enhanced performance, superior resiliency, higher availability, improved customer experiences, and more. Because the region is built on Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), new customers should be able to migrate existing workloads with ease.

Also Read: UAE Central Bank Establishes Cybersecurity Operations Center

Oracle is a major player in the Middle East, and its clients include everyone from Abu Dhabi Customs to Emaar Properties to Mashreq Bank. Jae Sook Evans, Oracle’s chief information officer, said that the Middle East is a priority region for the company.

Oracle aims to operate a network of at least 44 cloud regions globally by the end of 2022. Currently, it has 34 cloud regions globally, with new regions also set to open in Europe, Asia, and Latin America. Its largest competitors in the Middle East include IBM, Amazon Web Services, SAP, and Alibaba Cloud.

The cloud market in the Middle East is forecasted to reach over $8.79 Billion by 2022, up from $2.17 Billion in 2016.

News

Saudi Digital Payments Reach 80% As Cash Use Shrinks

Visa data shows cards and mobile wallets dominate spending, with smartphones now driving a growing share of daily transactions.

Published

1 day ago

January 23, 2026

Nour Nasir

saudi digital payments reach 80% as cash use shrinks

Digital payments now account for 80% of all transactions in Saudi Arabia, according to Visa’s latest Where Cash Hides report, another marker of how quickly the Kingdom is moving away from cash.

The share is up four percentage points from a year ago. Around 67% of consumers are now largely non-cash users, paying mainly with cards or mobile wallets. Smartphones are taking a bigger role, with mobile payments making up 16% of transactions.

visa where cash hides saudi arabia 2026

Cash is retreating in routine spending. Eating out dropped 9%. Bill payments fell 8%, as shoppers opt for faster checkouts and app-based payments.

“The data shows a steady move toward digital payments in Saudi Arabia. Such progress is possible only because banks, fintechs, merchants, and technology partners are moving together in the same direction, in line with the Kingdom’s Vision 2030,” said Ali Bailoun, Visa’s Senior Vice President and Group Country Manager for Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, and Oman.

Also Read: UAE Users Sleep Less, But More Efficiently, ŌURA Data Reveals

Despite the recent findings, it’s important to note that cash hasn’t yet disappeared. It still shows up for tips (39%), peer-to-peer transfers (28%) and rent (14%).

Visa points to security features such as tokenization, along with rewards and cashback, as factors nudging more spending onto cards and phones — a shift that tracks with Saudi Arabia’s wider Vision 2030 push to digitize commerce.