GCC NET

As a main objective, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) strives to achieve coordination and cooperation among its members in all fields to ensure a unified methodology. To this end, GCC sub-committees focus on establishing appropriate programs and systems to reach the highest level possible of cooperation and integration. One example is the GCC Committee of Governors of Monetary Institutions and Central Banks which strives for adoption of a unified GCC currency, as well as for total agreement regarding integration and compatibility of “monetary policies and financial legislation” among the member states on a macro level.

In view of the above, a network was established in the year 1997 to connect all ATMs across the member states, aiming to give GCC nationals the benefit of this service, as well as the parties participating in the network.

In a further extension of the GCC Net, a service was also launched connecting Gulf POSs to ATM cards between the states of Kuwait, Bahrain, and Qatar. The service allows the carrier of a card issued in a participating country to use the card at POSs in any other participating country within the network, with the same benefits and restrictions stated upon for use at POSs of the issuing country, and in a manner that ensures the privacy and security of transactions for providers and users of the service.

GCC Net has many advantages for GCC countries in line with compliance with global standards for similar international networks. Main among these benefits is availability of the national ATM network service at suitable fees, and with the decline of the exchange rate margin for GCC currencies, settlement of accounts among the member states is carried out by their local agents without the need to open an account in any non-GCC currency.