In addition to its banking sector, Oman’s financial services industry includes a growing insurance sector and rapidly developing capital markets. In 2024 the insurance sector maintained its growth trajectory, with higher revenue and profit, while the Muscat Stock Exchange (MSX) is advancing with major programmes aimed at deepening and widening its securities, bond and sukuk (Islamic bond) markets.
These moves occurred in tandem with a major overhaul of Oman’s financial regulatory environment and the rollout of a new regulatory framework and supervisory body for the sector. The Financial Services Authority (FSA) was established in March 2024 as the lead national agency tasked with overseeing the activities of entities in the insurance and capital markets sectors. Giving dedicated support to insurance and capital markets, the establishment of the FSA heralds a new level of maturity for the industry. This dovetails with national economic development plans that underline the key role that financial services play in the economy’s diversification. Along with continued expansion of the domestic economy, growth in the financial services sector has been robust. Financial and insurance activities contributed 5.8% of GDP in the third quarter of 2024, up 3.4% year-on-year (y-o-y). This expansion is widely expected to continue in the years ahead.
Insurance Oversight & Strategy
The reorganisation of the FSA, however, did not only transfer the direct role of regulating the insurance sector from the disbanded Capital Market Authority (CMA) to the FSA. The new body was also charged with expanding the range of insurance services, asset classes and investment products available in the sultanate. Another role the newly formed FSA assumed is that of overseeing the rollout of Dhamani, the platform for health service providers, third-party agents and other bodies to develop and manage the new mandatory health insurance scheme. The FSA will also be responsible for promoting the development of the bancassurance segment, which was formally codified through regulations issued in October 2023. Those regulations, developed in consultation with the Oman Insurance Association, establish a formal framework for the relationship between insurance firms and banks to enable the offering of insurance products through financial institutions.
The FSA and other market players see bancassurance as a way of expanding awareness of insurance products and boosting accessibility across Oman, including in regions less well-served by mainstream service providers. In January 2024 the National Programme for Fiscal Sustainability and Financial Sector Development (Estidamah) – which is managed by the Ministry of Finance (MoF) – also unveiled a strategic package of measures aimed at helping to develop the insurance sector. This new strategy includes an exploration of captive insurance; a boost to professional standards; new safeguards for investors’ rights in insurance and takaful (Islamic insurance) companies; the provision of comprehensive health care protection; and enhancing the role of Oman Re – the sultanate’s reinsurance entity – as a way of developing the local reinsurance market. October 2024 saw the FSA approve a new co-insurance regulation, allowing Omani companies without licences to issue health products to act as reinsurers for such policies, with further moves expected in 2025.
Capital Markets Oversight
The FSA’s creation also placed the sultanate’s capital markets under new management, as this new body took over the responsibilities previously undertaken by the CMA. The key body for both stocks and fixed income is the MSX, which replaced the Muscat Securities Market (MSM) in April 2021. The MSM dated back to 1989, when it was set up as a government entity, while the MSM Index was established in 1999. The launch of the MSX was a key part of an ongoing privatisation programme for market structures, which also included the Muscat Clearing and Depository Company. Now 89.3% owned by the MSX, this is the central body responsible for clearing, settlement and deposit services for MSX-traded securities. The MSX is wholly owned by the Oman Investment Authority (OIA), the sultanate’s sovereign wealth fund.
In terms of the debt capital market, the first half of 2024 saw two key regulations issued by the FSA. These were the Sustainable Finance Framework, issued in January, and a new sukuk and bond regulation in March. The first regulation adds further environmental, social and governance requirements to bond and sukuk issuance, including an obligation for external auditing. The latter regulation aims to bring more transparency and clarity to Islamic and conventional bonds. It requires – for example – that sukuk issuers produce an annual report demonstrating the sharia compatibility of their offering.
In August 2024 the FSA followed these new regulations up with a major new initiative, the Capital Market Incentives Programme (CMIP). The CMIP goes along with the efforts of Estidamah and Oman Vision 2040, the national economic and social development programme. This long-term strategy seeks to deepen and widen Oman’s financial markets. The CMIP, meanwhile, offers a range of benefits to companies that list, including tax waivers and preferential treatment in government procurement contracts.
Estidamah
The Estidamah programme was rolled out in January 2024, replete with initiatives targeting greater access to financing from the capital markets, as well as banks. As with the CMIP, the programme’s 74 initiatives have been developed in coordination with the MoF, the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion, and the MSX. The initiatives come under four headings, or enablers: the development of financial technology (fintech) infrastructure and the promotion of financial innovation and entrepreneurship; the promotion of financial literacy and an investment culture; the updating of laws and regulations; and the enhancing of skills to ensure quality financial services.
The broad-based Estidamah programme mobilises everything from education and training to new fin-tech regulation, with the latter building on the work done before and after the Central Bank of Oman (CBO) launched its Fintech Regulatory Sandbox in 2020. A key aim of these programmes is the elevation of the MSX to emerging market status by the MSCI – a long-term objective of the Omani authorities. Indeed, the MSX itself has been following a five-year development programme since 2021, also aimed at upgrading its status. The programme aims to increase market liquidity and capitalisation, while boosting digitalisation, product innovation, transparency and marketing. Progress on this has been made, and in June 2024, Haitham Al Salmi, CEO of MSX, said the exchange was ready to become an emerging market and join the MSCI’s watchlist in the next two years.
Since 2023 the MSX has been ready to receive joint listing requests with the Saudi Exchange, known as the Tadawul. This followed a strategic partnership agreement in February 2022 between the MSX and the Saudi Company for Exchanging Digital Information – known as the Tabadul – which acts as a digital exchange incubator. This also links the MSX to digital markets in Abu Dhabi, Bahrain and Kazakhstan. The MSX is active among international professional bodies, and in 2023 it assumed the presidency of the Arab Federation of Capital Markets. The CEO of the MSX also became the vice-chair of the Federation of Euro-Asian Stock Exchanges that year.
Insurance Players
In mid-2024 the sector consisted of 16 firms, with 14 conventional and two, takaful. Half of the 16 firms operating in the market – including two takaful policywriters – are domestic.
According to the FSA, conventional firms account for approximately 86% of all gross direct premium, with takaful making up the remainder. In addition, there were 33 insurance brokers, 140 insurance agents, four health insurance third-party agents and one reinsurance company. The sector’s top professional body is the Oman Insurance Association.
As of 2023 Oman’s population was estimated to be slightly more than 5m, with 6.5% annual growth and forecast to hit 5.3m people in 2024, according to the World Bank. This growth, and a relatively low insurance penetration rate of 1.2% in 2022, indicates strong market potential, with Dubai-based investment bank Alpen Capital forecasting penetration rising to 1.8% by 2028. Oman’s projected compound annual growth rate for 2023-28 of 4.5% is lower than the GCC rate of 5.3%. However, it is substantially higher than the 3.7% growth that the sultanate registered from 2017-22, taking the insurance sector’s value to some $1.8bn in 2028, up from $1.4bn in 2022.
A series of mergers at the end of 2022 and the decision of some operators to close their local offices has seen the total number of firms operating in the Omani insurance market fall from a peak of 22 in 2014, when the CMA issued new regulations requiring local firms to list on the MSX. Takaful firms must also be listed joint-stock companies.
In September 2023 leading market players Al Ahlia Insurance and National Life & General Insurance Company (NLGIC) – having merged in July 2023 – rebranded as Liva Group, with the new entity debuting on the MSX in October of that year. The merger further consolidated the hold the former NLGIC had on the domestic market, with Liva accounting for 33.2% of the conventional market share in terms of revenue in 2024, followed by Dhofar Insurance and Oman Qatar Insurance (OQIC) with 20.6% and 15.8%, respectively. OQIC – a subsidiary of the Doha-based Qatar Insurance Company – itself merged with Vision Insurance in February 2023, giving the resulting entity a strong presence in the life, medical and general insurance segments. Other insurers listed on the MSX include Arabia Falcon Insurance Company, Muscat Insurance and Oman United Insurance. The two takaful providers, Al Madina Takaful and Takaful Oman, are also listed and comprised 7.3% of the total general insurance market in 2024. The relatively new third-party administrator segment, established by the CMA in 2021, consists of four entities: Green Line Insurance, MedNet, Nextcare Claim Management and Vipul Better Care Management Services.
Foreign Players
Oman Re continues to be the sole entity in the reinsurance segment. Incorporated in 2008, it listed on the MSX in November 2021. Oman Re has moved to broaden the base of its operations, with branches in Turkey, Pakistan and the UAE. There are also eight international insurance firms operating in Oman: Cigna Middle East Insurance Company and Orient Insurance Company, both Dubai-based; Bahrain-based GIG Gulf; Iran Insurance; MetLife of the US; New India Assurance Company; Saudi Arabian Insurance; and Sukoon Insurance, formerly Oman Insurance Company, headquartered in Dubai.
According to the most recently audited, sector-wide figures available – the CMA’s final report on the insurance sector for 2022 – the health insurance segment continued to dominate in terms of business, accounting for 35% of gross written premium (GWP) that year. This was followed by motor vehicle coverage, which represented 19.7% of GWP. In 2024 the insurance sector registered OR476.8m ($1.2bn) of GWP, an approximate 4% decrease from the previous year. While final audited data for the year had not been released as of February 2025, CBO data suggests the sector’s contribution to GDP increased in 2024. Indeed, CBO data for the financial services and insurance sectors combined shows a slight uptick in contribution to GDP from OR2.6bn ($6.8bn) in 2022 to OR2.7bn ($7.1bn) in 2023.
Capital Markets Structure
In capital markets, the MSX has a number of indices, led by the benchmark MSX Index. This index is composed of the 30 most liquid companies on the exchange. The exchange also features the MSX Fixed Income Index, the MSX Sharia Index and the MSX Total Return Index – which contains total return indices for three sectors – financial, industrial and services. As of end-2024 the MSX Index contained 11 financial sector companies, six industrial sector outfits and 13 services sector enterprises. In terms of market capitalisation, financial was the largest sector, with a total of OR4.6bn ($11.9bn), followed by services, with OR2.2bn ($5.6bn), and industrials, with OR488.1m ($1.3bn). Total market capitalisation for the MSX Index was more than OR7.2bn ($18.8bn) at end-2024, with financial institutions dominating the financial sector board and the benchmark index overall. In the third quarter of 2024 services took first place in terms of the value of shares traded on the MSX, with 62.1% and OR164m ($426.3m). Financials, were second, with 28.5% of the total, at OR75.3m ($195.6m), while the industrial sector recorded 5.8% and OR15.3m ($39.8m). Bonds and sukuk traded OR9.4m ($24.4m) or approximately 3.6% of the total.
Heading the financial sector index – in terms of market capitalisation at the end of 2024 – was Bank Muscat, the sultanate’s largest lender, with OR1.9bn ($4.9bn). Meanwhile, the largest services company was Omantel, with OR706.5m ($1.8bn). The largest industrial company was Oman Cables Industry, with OR242.2m ($629.5m). The indices – each of which contained 15 companies in December 2024 – had market capitalisations of OR4.9bn ($12.7bn) for financial services, OR2.2bn ($5.8bn) for services and OR694.5m ($1.8bn) for the industrial sector.
Sector Indices
The MSX Sharia Index, meanwhile, consisted of 15 companies with a combined market capitalisation of OR776.7m ($2bn) at end-2024. The largest entity was Oman Cables Industry, followed by Bank Nizwa, the sultanate’s only fully sharia-compliant bank. All companies listed on the index are required to adhere to the Accounting and Auditing Organisation for Islamic Financial Institutions’ rules on sharia compliance. As for the MSX Total Return Index, the 30 listed companies had a combined market capitalisation of OR7.2bn ($18.8bn) as of December 2024. The index includes the reinvestment of cash dividends declared by its listed companies in order to allow investors to calculate the total returns available from such reinvestment decisions.
The MSX also has a Fixed Income Index, which tracks the performance of government-issued bonds and sukuk. Issues must be at least OR100m ($259.9m) in value, and there were six sukuk and 16 government bonds on the market as of February 2025. The exchange also has a corporate bond and sukuk market, with eight sukuk and 22 bonds listed. In addition, there were five mutual funds listed at that time, including two real estate investment funds (REIFs) – that is, The Pearl REIF and Jabal REIF – as well as the Oman Real Estate Investment Trust Fund.
In terms of foreign participation, while the majority of securities are owned by Omani nationals, equal to OR21.1bn ($54.8bn) in 2023, other GCC nationals account for a significant proportion. In particular, Qatari nationals held OR495.5m ($1.3bn) of market capitalisation, according to the 2023 MSX annual report. Meanwhile Emiratis held OR391.9m ($1bn), Saudis, OR176.8m ($459.6m), Bahraini nationals owned OR170.8m ($443.9m) worth of securities and Kuwaiti investors, OR141.2m ($367.1m). Companies based in the UK’s offshore financial centre, Guernsey, held OR341.3m ($887.1m), while OR258.8m ($672.7m) was held in the Netherlands.
Capital Markets Performance
Overall, the last five years have seen a steady rise in the MSX Index, which stood at 3981 points in 2019 and closed 2023 at 4514. The index gained further in 2024, closing the year at 4577 points. Posting growth of 1.4%, the index ranked as the third-best-performing market in the GCC within the MSCI GCC Countries Combined Index, itself up 0.7% for the year. Profit for listed companies was up 4.3% y-o-y in the first nine months of 2024, to stand at more than $1.6bn. The banking sector led the way, with total earnings up 8.8% y-o-y. A high for 2024 was set in May when the index reached 4865 points. The total market value of the listed financial instruments witnessed a marked increase in 2024, up 15.9% on the previous year, from OM23.8bn ($61.9bn) to OR27.6bn ($71.7bn). The trading value of new listed instruments increased 11%, from OR1.1bn ($2.9bn) to OR1.3bn ($3.3bn). contributing to the MSX Index’s higher market value. Total volume grew by 47.1%, reaching 6.4bn shares for the year, compared to 4.4bn in 2023.
In 2024 two of the three sector indices on the MSX registered gains, with the services sector index rising by 11.3%, bolstered by a number of constituent stocks having increased share prices. The financial index posted a 4.5% gain, while the industrial sector index declined by 3.7%. In terms of trading volume on the MSX in 2024, Sohar International Bank (SIB) led all securities, with nearly 1bn shares traded, worth OR123.7m ($321.5m). The volume is more than triple the 293.9m shares traded in 2023.
There were two initial public offerings (IPOs) in 2023 – OQ Gas Networks (OQGN), a subsidiary of government-run energy company – and OQ Abraj Energy Services, OQ’s drilling and oil services unit. IPO subscriptions for the former exceeded the volume of shares by 14 times, while for the latter, the ratio was 7.8 times, demonstrating the popularity among investors. The two IPOs were also part of the ongoing divestment plan by the OIA. Under this, the sultanate’s sovereign wealth fund is scheduled to exit from its holdings in a number of other entities. OQ, for example, contains a special unit to look at IPOs for other units within the energy giant, formerly known as the Oman Oil Company. OQGN and Abraj took total listings on the MSX to 106 by end-2023, along with three real estate funds, while annual IPO proceeds were OR408m ($1.1bn). In contrast, by the end of 2024, there were 139 listed securities in which IPOs raised approximately $2.5bn, or 19% of the GCC’s total. Meanwhile, in 2024 the MSX undertook a series of roadshows and other promotional events. IPOS: One of the year’s major events was the October 2024 IPO of a 25% stake in OQ Exploration and Production (OQEP). The offering was 2.4 times over-subscribed, with demand reaching some OR1.8bn ($4.7bn). The offer was particularly attractive, as OQEP planned to distribute 90% of its available cash in dividends, every quarter. The listing, the biggest IPO in the sultanate’s history, made OQEP the largest company on the MSX, with a market capitalisation of over OR3bn ($7.8bn). For the year, 673.7m shares of OQEP, worth OR253m ($657.5m), changed hands, topping the value traded chart in 2024. A further 525m shares of OQGN were traded during the year.
In December 2024 OQ Base Industries – OQ’s methanol, ammonia and liquefied petroleum gas producer – completed an IPO of 49% of its shares. The offering raised OR188m ($488.6m), after attracting demand worth OR387m ($1bn). The remaining 51% of the shares continue to be held by OQ. Also in December, Alizz Islamic Bank’s Perpetual Sukuk listed on the MSX’s bonds and sukuk market, with a total value of OR30m ($78m) – comprising a tranche of OR26.2m ($68m) and a US dollar tranche equivalent to OR3.8m ($10m). In other company news, Al Batinah Hotels became a closed joint-stock company in April 2024. The interconnectedness of the global economy also became evident in the final months of 2024 when a global decline in emerging market indices impacted the MSX. Expectations of continued higher-than-normal interest rates in the US saw the MSX Index down to 4468 points at the end of December, falling from 4826 points in October. For funds, May 2024 saw the Oman National Investments Development Company (Tanmia), in partnership with the Bahrain-based regional investment bank, SICO, launch the Tanmia Liquidity Fund, valued at $126m.
Market Makers
Liquidity was the issue addressed by the announcement in June 2023 that two companies – U Capital and United Securities – had been licensed as market makers and liquidity providers by the MSX. In January 2024 the first two liquidity provider agreements were announced, with Omantel appointing United Securities its liquidity provider and SIB appointing U Capital. These moves help deepen the market while facilitating daily trading.
In January 2023 it was announced that a 10% withholding tax applicable to stock dividends would no longer be applied to dividends paid by Omani companies to resident shareholders. This followed several previous, temporary suspensions of the tax and is a result of the government’s overall strategy for the development of capital markets via financial incentives. In general, the first six months of 2024 were impacted by a wait-and-see approach among investors, as the FSA and government officials signalled the unveiling of new market development plans.
Insurance
As of January 2023 Oman’s conventional insurers are required to adopt International Financial Reporting Standard (IFRS) 17, an accounting standard for reporting results. Having enacted a staged implementation across 2022, IFRS 17 replaces IFRS 4, the interim standard for takaful operators since 2004. This has resulted in some changes to how fiscal and operating results are reported, but has also brought the Omani insurance sector into line with the latest international standards. The insurance sector’s economic output is driven by six domestic firms and one reinsurance company in the conventional segment, which generated OR442.1m ($1.1bn) in GWP in 2024 according to a preliminary assessment by Dubai-headquartered consulting firm SHMA. Additionally, there was a notable decrease in after-tax profit for Omani insurers from OR19.5m ($50.7m) in 2023 to OR9.6m ($24.9m) in 2024, despite insurance revenue for the conventional segment rising 4.8% y-o-y to 241m ($626.4m) in the third quarter.
The two domestic sukuk firms, Al Madina Takaful and Takaful Oman, saw their combined gross contribution rise 25% y-o-y from OR55m ($142.9m) to OR68m ($176.7m) in the third quarter of 2024. The firms also witnessed a 21% y-o-y increase in earned contribution, from OR24m ($62.4m) to OR29m ($75.4m) in the quarter. In terms of channels, bancassurance has also been expanding, with the majority of growth generated by premium collected by domestic insurance firms.
Weathering The Storm
While results for 2023 and the first quarter of 2024 were positive, the performance of the sector was impacted by losses stemming from the heavy flooding caused by the Al Mateer Depression weather event in mid-April 2024. The storms, which impacted the whole Gulf, left at least 21 dead in Oman and caused damage in many regions of the country. Al Sharqiyah North Governorate was particularly badly affected. In late April 2024 the FSA directed insurance firms to speed up their assessment and payout process related to claims resulting from that weather event, and to increase resources dedicated to completing the procedures. According to data issued by the FSA, more than 3100 claims stemming from damaged caused by the storms had been approved by May 9 that year, with payouts completed or pending totalling OR20.4m ($53m). Of that total, around OR16m ($41.6m) was for damage to houses, workplaces and other properties; a further OR3m ($7.8m) for engineering losses; and OR1.2m ($3.2m) in payouts on motor insurance policies. Liva reported that the storms had caused the sector a 33% increase in insurance expenses. The impact of this on the bottom lines of insurers was evident in reports for the first six months of 2024 from the sector’s listed companies.
Conventional Insurance
As the sultanate’s largest insurer, Liva reported a consolidated after-tax loss of OR5m ($13m) for 2024, compared to an after-tax profit of OR6.4m ($16.6m) the previous year, according to the company’s initial unaudited 2024 financial results. The group ascribed this to an exceptional loss due to the weather event in its semi-annual report. Losses of some OR23.8m ($61.9m) in the first half of the year from Liva’s Emirati operations – the UAE was also significantly impacted by the floods – affected the group’s results. However, on a positive note, Liva recorded an after-tax profit of OR10.9m ($28.3m) in the second half of 2024, up 47% y-o-y. Liva reported that its insurance service results reached a net profit of OR13.7m ($35.6m) in the second half of the year, a 208% y-o-y improvement. As a result, the group’s solvency ratio remained well above the FSA’s minimum requirements.
Dhofar Insurance’s financial results indicate limited impact of the storm, recording a net profit of OR2.4m ($6.3m) at the end of the third quarter of 2024, down 23% y-o-y. OQIC reported a net profit of OR1.1m ($2.8m) in the first six months of 2024, after a loss of OR1m ($2.6m) in the first half of 2023. Each of the three largest conventional insurers reported revenue gains in 2024. Liva posted a 6% increase, from OR310.8m ($807.7m) to OR329.5m ($856.3m) at end-2024. Meanwhile, Dhofar saw a 20% y-o-y uptick, from OR54.9m ($142.6m) to OR65.8m ($171.1m) at the end of the third quarter of 2024. Lastly, OQIC’s revenue rose 30% y-o-y, from OR25.9m ($67.2m) to OR33.6m ($87.3m) in the first half of the year, according to the companies’ most recent quarterly results.
Islamic Insurance
Al Madina Takaful and Takaful Oman also weathered the storm well as evident by their third quarter results. Al Madina reported a 29% y-o-y uptick in gross written contribution, from OR26.6m ($69.1m) to OR34.3m ($89.1m), while Takaful Oman saw its contribution up 22% y-o-y, from OR27.6m ($71.8m) to OR33.8m ($87.7m). Al Madina also reported a net profit increase, up by 13% to OR1.2m ($3.1m). Takaful Oman was more severely impacted, however, reporting that it had to deal with more than 1000 claims related to Al Mateer, leaving it with a slight net profit of OR440,000 ($1.1m). Overall, the 2024 financial results thus demonstrated the robust nature of both the conventional insurance and takaful segments – as they addressed a surge in claims, yet utilised sound underwriting discipline and strategy to still return largely favourable results.
Reinsurance
Oman Re, posted solid results in 2023, with reinsurance revenue of OR42.1m ($109.4m) – a 29% increase on the OR32.5m ($84.5m) recorded the previous year. The company’s strong performance continued into 2024, with a further 17.4% y-o-y rise in reinsurance revenue in the third quarter of 2024, despite the impact of the Al Mateer weather event. Revenue was OR37.4m ($97.1m) for the first nine months of 2024, compared to OR31.8m ($82.7m) in the corresponding period of 2023. Net profit after tax was down slightly, however, from OR1.9m ($4.8m) to OR1.4m ($3.7m).
Oman Re reported to the MSX that the company had suffered flood losses that reduced its net rein-surance results by 73.4% in the third quarter of 2024 to OR549,000 ($1.4m). In February 2024 the CMA granted Oman Re a re-takaful (Islamic reinsurance) licence, giving the company access to the sharia-compliant segment of the reinsurance market. In June 2024 credit ratings agency Fitch Ratings affirmed Oman Re’s long-term insurer financial strength at “BBB-” with a stable outlook.
Health Insurance Rollout
The establishment of systems for the distribution of Oman’s mandatory national health insurance scheme, Dhamani, began in January 2023 and continued into 2024. The scheme is expected to give the sultanate’s insurers and takaful players a major boost (see Education & Health chapter). Private sector employees, expatriates and foreign visitors – a total of around 2m people – are to be covered by the Dhamani programme, which is being rolled out in phases. The first of these covers expatriates and visitors, with policies available via an online platform. This integrates insurers and takaful companies with the Ministry of Labour, the Royal Oman Police and health insurance third-party administrators. Further developments with Dhamani are expected, with implementation of the scheme now expected in early 2025.
Insurance Digitalisation
Under a regulation issued in October 2023, all conventional insurance and takaful companies operating in the sultanate are required to offer digital services, subject to approval, with brokers having the option of developing a platform to provide a licensed e-insurance service. This can include the marketing and selling of policies, the collection of premiums, the acceptance of claims, and the services dealing with customer complaints, along with other insurance-related activities.
In the first quarter of 2024, in one of its last acts before its roles and responsibilities were taken over by the FSA, the CMA granted regulatory approval to digital platforms developed by four insurance entities, allowing them to offer services electronically. The four were Arabia Falcon Insurance Company, GIG Gulf, Integrated Insurance Brokerage Solutions and Insurance House. In July 2024 the FSA announced it had granted approval to five additional insurance companies, including Takaful Oman and Liva, to provide digital services through their online platforms. The previous month the FSA had launched an awareness and training programme aimed at increasing understanding of the threats posed by cyberattacks and the benefits of employing cyber-risk insurance policies as a risk management tool.
Outlook
The sultanate’s financial services industry looks set to expand further in 2025. In the insurance sector, increased diversification of the economy and greater awareness of insurance products will be key drivers, as will new regulatory requirements, such as mandatory health coverage. Recent moves towards greater digitalisation and expanding service reach through bancassurance can also be expected to give further momentum to the sector. In capital markets, the drive towards economic diversification is having a positive effect on market development. The CMIP and the MSX’s own development plans, in addition to programmes from Estidamah and the FSA, are all helping to deepen and widen the sultanate’s securities, bonds and sukuk platforms, which in turn helps develop the wider economy.
Naturally, progress will not be without challenges – many private sector and family-owned companies have long stayed away from the kind of extra scrutiny and limited control that public listings can involve. Yet, the package of incentives for listing on the MSX is now highly attractive, with larger companies, in particular, likely wanting to take advantage of these opportunities. The continued exit strategy of the OIA should also provide for a steady stream of IPOs in the years to come, while moves to increase market liquidity through funds are likely to draw in more investor interest, while trading on the MSX Index and the sector indices becomes more continuous.
