Financial markets across the Arabian Peninsula have transformed from small, quasi-medieval structures in the 1960s to large world-class groupings of financial institutions. In their new book, The Financial Markets of the Arab Gulf: Power, Politics and Money, Jean-François Seznec and Samer Mosis evaluate the growth of these markets and provide a detailed overview of the current form and function of the Gulf’s financial markets.

In this panel, speakers drew on their extensive knowledge of the region’s markets to explain how modern financial mechanisms have acted as a buffer between Gulf societies at large and the newfound cash reserves of Gulf Arab states over the last 50 years. Speakers also explored the dynamics behind key financial developments in the region: the unclear status of ambitious Gulf initial public offerings, the factors underlying high-profile bank mergers, and the opportunities and challenges confronting stock markets across the Gulf.