Bahrain: AI a Turning Point for the Global Economy

Bahraini Minister of Finance and National Economy Sheikh Salman bin Khalifa Al Khalifa affirmed that artificial intelligence, digital payments, digital identity, and stablecoins are no longer isolated stories but have become interwoven threads of the same fabric, reflecting the rapid transformations underway in the global financial sector toward an era that relies on intelligence to shape the contours of future financing. He made these remarks while delivering the keynote address at the FinTech Forward 2026 forum, noting that artificial intelligence holds exceptional promise for the financial sector, necessitating its deployment in a secure and inherently accountable manner. He clarified that the global financial sector previously relied on paper to record all its transactions, then shifted to large and complex data networks, whereas today it relies on intelligence to leverage information, and those who design this intelligence will define the contours of the next era of financing. He called for its design to be exemplary, trustworthy, and interconnected, thereby enabling the system to be more flexible and resilient in the face of challenges.